Duo from the Wastes
by LostSoulWeeping
Summary: Heroes of a world, long since burned by nuclear hellfire, find themselves thrust into a strange land plagued by beasts and terrorists. Now separated, how will these twins, who were formed by a lawless wasteland, adapt to a world of rules and regulations while they search for one another?
1. Start

**A.N: if you're reading this again, then this is an update of the original chapter. If this is your first time reading this story, then I humbly welcome you to my story. As bad and poorly done as it may be, I do hope you enjoy the effort and time that I put into this.**

 **Grazie.**

…The blinding light slowly began to fade as Cole felt his boots land on the steel surface of the Sinks exterior deck. He could still hear the faint buzzing sound ring in the back of his head, a side effect from the _Transportalponder_ deconstructing him in one place and rebuilding him at another. He took a moment to let the sound fade away as he made sure that everything on his person was in order. No missing limbs, none of his inventory items having mysteriously disappeared.

' _Good.'_ He thought. Satisfied that nothing had vanished. He turned around and walked through the door and into the Sink, his sister's personal living quarters. Passing by the inactive personality units without so much as a word and taking the elevator down in silence.

This visit with his sister was an unusual one. Lilly, in all her silent glory, had called _him_ here. Something that his genius of a sister had trouble doing. Even with her own brother. What's more interesting was that she didn't even tell him _what_ she wanted him here for, her message simply stating: _'it'll be a surprise'._

' _Let's hope it's better than the last one.'_ He thought. The elevator making a ding, signaling that he had reached ground level. Stepping out into the crater that housed the science facilities of the Big MT, Cole began the walk to his sister's personal dome. The familiar sounds of gravel crunching underneath his boots, the ambient noise of Lobotomites fighting with each other; listening as it all slowly faded away and into to the background. He breathed shallow breaths as he walked, the irritated air that plagued his world still present, even inside a place as advanced as this. He rolled the awful taste the air left over in his mouth around a bit and spat it out a few seconds later. He pondered what his sister could possibly want to show him. Maybe it was a new weapon? A new suit of armor she'd built for herself? Or maybe something that could _actually_ help him with the situation in New Vegas?

' _One can only dream.'_ He thought optimistically. Nearing Lilly's personal dome. The rotunda was smaller than the Think Tanks main building or even Dr. Mobius'. Despite the lack of size, his sister was probably more at home in the cramped space than she was inside the Sink. Lilly wasn't that big on open spaces and she often sought the confines of her power armor when they traveled together.  
She was probably the more intelligent, not to mention most stable, out of the two factions. Often working on projects that were more humane than what the Think Tank had been doing before twins had arrived. She even worked on projects the brains had long since given up on, such as the stealth suit MKIII that he now had in his possession, along with an advanced computer system for her power armor.

The older twin arrived at his sister's personal dome. The metal door letting out a screech as he turned the crank and pushed it open. Upon entering, Cole's senses were assaulted with a buzz of noise. He squinted his eyes as the sounds of saws cutting through steel and blow torches wielding metal stung his ears. Through it all, he looked about the room to see robots strewn about the place, all of them working on a part of a larger machine that sat in the center of the room.

A glass box sat directly in the center of the thing the bots were working on. The corners reinforced with a steel frame and around it sat two Tesla coils on opposite sides. Above it were four conductors that had been mounted onto a track that aligned with the center. The equipment was inactive and Cole wondered just how Lilly had procured so much of it. Not to mention what the purpose of it all was left Cole only to guess.

This couldn't possibly be what Lilly wanted to show him, could it?

The older sibling continued to look about the chaos until his eyes fell upon a lone figure standing by a suit of inactive power armor. Her head of silver grey hair barely came up to the suits chest plate and her silver grey eyes watched the robots with such intensity.

His twin had remained entirely focused on the machines and their work, seemingly having missed his entrance. Smiling to himself, Cole crouched low and maneuvered through the chaos until he was behind the power armor. Stealthily grabbing the suits arms, he moved the lifeless metal appendages to cover his sister's eyes.

"Guess who~?" he asked in a sing song voice.

As soon as he'd finished speaking, Lilly ducked out from under the arms and delivered a kick to the back of his left knee. Following the attack by grabbing the scruff of his shirt and throwing him onto his back, latching on to his right arm and planting a boot down on the joint.

Cole winced and looked up at his sister. Giving his twin cheeky grin while ignoring the pain in his arm. Lilly didn't seem to appreciate this and put more pressure on his shoulder; pressing down until the two could hear various cracking noises.

"Stop! It's gonna-." Cole's pleas were cut off as his twin dislocated his arm. The older twin grit his teeth and groaned loudly into his other arm. Only slightly regretting his decision to try and surprise his sister.

Finally, after releasing his damaged arm, did the younger sibling return his grin; satisfied with having taught her brother a lesson about sneaking up on her. She reached out a hand and pulled him up. The grin fading as she watched her brother relocate his arm with a blank stare; the two listening to the various cracks and pops as he realigned the limb.

Letting out a satisfied sigh at one loud _snap_ , Cole shook his head at Lilly: "Is that how you treat your own brother?" he asked rhetorically. Feigning disappointment and giving her a sad look.

Lilly didn't say anything, merely shrugging and giving a playful punch to the arm she'd hurt. Cole winced from the slight jolt of pain and continued to rub the joint of the arm. Even though his little sister's hits were light, least by comparison to his wife's, they could still leave him hurting at times.

"So." he coughed into his right hand. Turning their attention back to the reason he was here: "What exactly was it you wanted to show me?" He asked. His question caused Lilly to gesture at the machine the robots had been working on when he'd walked in.

She held up a finger in front of him, the sign they'd agreed on to mean " _wait_ ", and began typing something into her Pip-Boy. A moment later, all of the robots stopped what they were doing and powered down. Looking up from her wrist mounted computer, Lilly then gestured for him to follow her. His twin turning around in a hurried blur and accidently running face first into the back of her power armor.

Cole bit his lip, trying to hold back his laughter as he watched his sibling begin whaling on the still suit of armor. Throwing punches and kicks at the steel frame, only for her to hurt herself and mutter silent curses from doing so. After giving a huff, and a final kick, she collected herself and the two walked towards a hub-like room. As soon as they'd stepped inside, Lilly handed him a card that read _"control room"._

The small center they now stood in directly faced the machine the bots had been working on. It housed the various consoles and monitors, all of which were blinking or showing a reading for the device they were connected to. Cole had to admit, the sight of so many computers running all at once was astonishing to say the least. Not to mention the fact that Lilly of all people was the one to get all of them up and running.

His twin tapped on his shoulder and handed him another card: _"This_ _is the reason I had you called here."_ Cole raised an eyebrow at that and Lilly pointed out at the machine. He gave her a nod, asking: "So what is it?"

Her answer was to rematerialize her own copy of the _Transportalponder._ Gesturing at the machine and then at the portal gun. She placed the gun down on a nearby computer and pulled out another card; scribbling something on it then handing it to him: _"It's like this…"_ the card began, looking up to see Lilly pointing at the device in her hand and then back at the machine: _"…but bigger."_ The card finished.

Cole pocketed the card and pinched his chin between his thumb and index as he thought. So, Lilly had spent all these months working on something that would take them back to the Big Empty and nowhere else?

How useful.

"Okay. So this is the surprise, I get that. But how exactly is this thing supposed to help? And more importantly, how does this help New Vegas?"

" _This device…"_ another card read: _"…will let us transport anything, anywhere, in the Mojave at a moment's notice."_ She beamed up at him once he'd finished reading; a wide smile spread across her face.

Cole had to admit, that _did_ sound useful. He could concede that point. But it wasn't exactly what he had been hoping for. Sure, they _could_ get supplies to the areas that needed them most. But that would mean they'd have to send most of their supplies to Big MT and _then_ to the location. And that seemed very impractical.

"So we'd need to move things here before we could transport them to a destination. That sounds just a little unfeasible for something meant to get things to a certain place instantaneously." He voiced his thoughts.

At this, Lilly shifted on the spot. Her expression changing from excitement to hesitant. She nodded and pulled out another card: _"I will admit, it does sound impractical. But think of all the good we could do? We'd be able to get things from here to anywhere in the Mojave! Someone in Westside needs medical supplies? Here they come!"_

Still, he had his doubts: "Have you even tested this thing at all?"

The question made Lilly's outward demeanor drop all together. Her shoulders sagging as she shook her head. _"I wanted you to be here for the very first trial."_ Her next note read. She looked up at him through her bangs. Her eyes, the same color as his, conveyed just how much this meant to her.

Closing his eye and sighing, Cole spoke again: "Alright. Let's just see if this thing works _before_ we start using it." He stopped to watch her reaction. "How's that sound?"

Lilly beamed at him. Lunging forward and giving him a tight hug. Upon his release, she excitedly typed on her Pip-Boy again and the robots outside resumed their work. The two looked on, the noise muffled by the walls of the control room, as the bots laid the finishing touches on the machine. _"This is something that will surely help the people of the Mojave. I will prove it to you."_ Her last card read.

Cole felt apprehensive about the whole thing. Something about all this still didn't feel right to him. Call it his "wastelander intuition". But despite his uneasiness, he continued to watch as his sister began typing on one of the consoles. A couple of the screens showed a map of the Mojave, a crosshairs settling over Westside.

She looked to him for a second and Cole gave her a small smile, mostly for her sake. He wasn't able to bring himself to voice anymore of his thoughts about this project that his twin had poured so much of herself into.

" _What's the worst that could happen?"_ he silently half joked. Watching as the bots outside moved a wooden crate into the glass case in the center of the device and closed the door, sealing it inside.

Lilly pressed a button and the faint hum of electricity could be heard around them as they watched the Tesla Coils begin to generate power. The hum in the air caused the hair on the back of his neck to stand at attention, further increasing his uneasiness about the whole thing.

Shifting his weight from leg to another, he and Lilly watched as sparks began to jump upward from the coils and at the conductors, which had begun to spin on the track they were aligned upon. The momentum causing a funnel of power to slowly obscure the crate from their vision in a blue haze.

Everything seemed to going fine, until one of the robots suddenly went flying into the vortex; effectively being smashed into pieces.

Cole raised an eyebrow at the display: "I take it _that_ wasn't supposed to happen?" He asked. Looking back to see his sister throw herself at the consoles, her hands moving across the buttons so fast they were almost a blur.

Warning symbols began appearing all along the monitors. Some read "power influx" while others showed random information that was mostly nonsense to him.

Cole narrowed his stare at the machine as he felt a light tug on his body. He noticed out of the corner of his eye that everything in the room had slowly begun to slide towards Lilly's machine. Just like the robot, anything that wasn't bolted down would be sucked in.

Including them.

Sparks suddenly flew out all over the place, lashing out at the remaining robots as the strength of the vortex intensified. Cole could feel the machine's pull on his body strengthen, and his survival instincts began setting off warning bells in his head as he watched more and more spare scrap-metal get sucked into the funnel.

Deciding that he would deal with her anger later, Cole moved to grab his sister before they could be sucked inside. The older twin had just about reached her when a steel beam inexplicably came flying towards them. Cole pushed off the floor and jumped at Lilly; shielding her as glass shards pelted down upon them. The two looked up to see the beam impaled right through the wall; they had just narrowly avoided being impaled.

With the glass protection gone, the noise from the machine flooded inside the room. The sound from the machine sounded like a cross between a turbine, mixed with the static of electricity.  
Over the noise Cole shouted: "We have to go!" he didn't wait for Lilly to answer as he picked her up and started for the door. As soon as he'd stepped out of the control cube, the machine nearly sucked them in right then and there. His boots slid on the stone floor and he tried to get some traction for them to get to the door.

Unable to do so, Cole franticly looked around for something that could help them. Seeing Lilly's suit of power armor still standing in its place.

He rushed over to it the suit while keeping Lilly shielded from all the tools and scrap metal that flew around them. Upon reaching the armor, he opened the back and pushed Lilly inside, much to her silent protests. The pull on Cole's body was stronger now; to the point where he had to hold onto Lilly's armor just to avoid being sucked in. climbing on her back, he pointed to the door and the two slowly began to make their way to it.

As soon as they were within arm's reach of escape, Cole was pulled in. The older sibling desperately tried to latch onto anything. All in a vain attempt.

The last thing he saw before everything turned into a blinding white, was the sight of Lilly falling over and being dragged into the vortex as well.

 **A/N: This is an update of the Prologue as I ran into a bit of writers block concerning the next chapter. (Don't worry, I will still be working on it.)**

 **If you guys want the already existing chapters to be revised like this one then go ahead and leave a review saying so. Though I will mostly still be trying to get the next chapter of this done as well.**

 **I hope you guys liked this revision and I will see you soon.**

 **Ciao.**


	2. Arrival

**A.N: Ayo everyone! This is a re-upload of chapter two since there's going to be a lot of stuff in the later chapters that will be added and most of you will probably go: "Wait what? That wasn't told to us before!"**

 **So to keep that from happening, I've re-written this chapter, and will probably re-write the others as well, so that this whole debacle makes sense.**

 **Anywho, I'll see ya's at the end of the chapter.**

 _Years ago…_

" _Dad won't be home till later tonight. Looks like it'll just be us again guys."_

 _Lilly didn't bother to look up from her homework, content to simply continue with her studies. After having heard those exact words so many times over, she almost expected them whenever Dean walked into through the door._

 _Two months after they had turned sixteen, their father had started working more late nights in the vault clinic. At first, either Lilly or Cole hadn't noticed his absence all that much. They merely acknowledged the fact that he would be working late and wasn't going to be home his usual time. Dean would come in, tell them the news, the twins would acknowledge it, then go back to whatever it was they were working on at the time._

 _But when he'd begun not coming home at all,_ then _they had begun to notice his absence._

 _This eventually became the norm. Dean, their older brother, tried his best to take care of her and Cole. But even he began to distance himself when she and her twin turned eighteen. Spending more and more nights with their father in the clinic; both of them working on something that they didn't want the twins to know about._

 _If only they hadn't kept them in the dark, then maybe they all could've left together._

 _Present time: Location unknown…_

"Fusion core depleted; switching to reserves in three… two… one…"

The HUD of Lilly's armor lit up as power returned to the suit. The dim light managed to stir the young woman from unconsciousness. Her body, in turn with having its senses slowly come back, stiffened as pain flooded her system. She let out a throaty cough as air filled her lungs; making her feel lightheaded and dizzy.  
Her vision blurred and she blinked repeatedly to clear the tears. Squinting at her HUD to see that, for the most part, she herself and her suit were fine overall. The outer armor had been damaged only just bit and the inner frame that controlled most of the movement remained intact.

 _At least that's a relief._ She thought thankfully. Without the use of a voice, she was unable to use the voice commands to switch the functions on her HUD. To circumvent this, Lilly had made a neural implant that connected her directly to the systems of the armor; turning it into a second skin of sorts.  
Focusing on what she wanted the suit to do, the heads up display suddenly switched to the STATS section. On it, appeared a Vault Boy with a dotted outline around his head and torso. It appeared she was suffering from a concussion and a few broken ribs, though the pain wasn't as prevalent, thanks to the PHOENIX Monocyte Breeder. Overall: she was fine. Her armor protected her from… from…

 _Oh god…_

The memories prior to her blackout came surging forth. The beginning of the test trial for the new teleporter she'd been working on. Everything suddenly going wrong.

And Cole being sucked into the vortex, his hands reaching out for her before he… he…

Lilly choked at the memory of her brother. The tears spilling out and leaving wet streaks down her face. She could vividly recall the memory of his face; locked in fear as he was incinerated. That could have possibly been the last time she would ever get to see him again, and it was the face he made before he died…

…because of her.

In that instant, Lilly felt like she was going to be sick. Her stomach lurched at the thought of Cole having been killed because of her. Greedily gulping air into her lungs in an attempt to calm her nerves. Wiping the streaks of tears away, she forced herself to focus on her own situation. The thoughts of her brother still threatening to bubble to the surface.

 _Don't think about that._ She told herself, her body still shaking inside the steel frame. _Let's just figure out where we are and move forward from there._ She switched to the DATA section and found her map displaying the message that only popped up when she was out of Robco satellite range.  
 _Great._ She thought to herself. Feeling an even heavier sense of dread settling inside her. Not only did she have the dilemma of figuring out whether or not she committed fratricide, but now she also had to figure out where in the world she was.

 _If_ she was still on the planet, that was.

Lilly shook her head and tried moving the armors arms and legs, only to find that they were locked tight. Switching back to the STATUS section, Lilly found a message under the effects menu that displayed: "Armor lock initiated. Awaiting user system reboot." The armor lock only happened in extreme situations. Whatever had happened to her after she was sucked into the vortex had obviously triggered the lockdown.

 _What a wonderful start._ The young wastelander thought tiredly. Inside her head, Lilly ran a million different possibilities of where she _might_ be, where Cole _could_ be, and what their respective situations could be.  
The feeling of panic tried to set into her again and she immediately squashed it down. She wouldn't accomplish anything by laying in her power armor, balling her eyes out, while Cole could be out their; possibly hurt.

Or worse.

 _I can't think about that. I won't think about that. I won't…_

"Where the hell do you think this thing came from?"

Lilly heard a voice ask somewhere out of the view of her helmet's visor. The sudden sound of someone speaking was a welcome distraction from her thoughts. It let her focus on something other than her thoughts about Cole and what might've happened to him.  
Although, she did find it odd that the voice hadn't seen, or at least heard, of power armor. If it had, why would it be asking where it came from?

"Dunno. Though if I had to wager a guess, I'd say it looks like one of Atlas' mech's." another voice answered.

 _Atlas?_ From the way they were talking about her armor, she guessed this 'Atlas' was a place; one she'd never heard of. Well, aside from those old Greek history books she'd had access to during her time in the vault.

Narrowing her eyes on the HUD, Lilly switched to the added SYSTEMS section. Scrolling to the power regulation section, she slowly began the process of unlocking her suits mobility while listening in on the conversation going on around her.

"Can you believe the mess this thing made? What'd they do, drop it out of the sky on purpose?"

"Looks that way. Damn techies. Always doing stuff like this." The one voice sighed, then continued: "Welp, we better bring it in and file a report. They can come and pick it up sometime this month."

Well, the fall _would_ explain why her armor was in the state it was. The Medic armor MKII would've locked all the servos in place so as to insure that no damage would come to the wearer; provided that the pilot was unconscious, of course.

"And would you look at those burn marks? Blasted thing looks like it's been through hell."

 _Burn marks?_ Had the vortex torched her armor when she was pulled in? The question remained unanswered, as Lilly heard the sounds of footsteps, then the rattling of chains. Whatever they were doing, they planned on moving her.

Fortunately, the servos at that moment let out a loud metallic _click_. The signal that everything was ready to go.

Smirking to herself, Lilly cracked her neck while she thought: _Let's get a look at where we are._

Standing up, the wastelander finally got a good look at her surroundings and… what she saw was… unbelievable.

An entire city. One that appeared to be completely untouched by nuclear radiation. Neon lights lit up the night, just like in New Vegas. Her helmets audio receptors picked up more sound, now that she was vertical; her ears receiving a blast of some kind of strange music.  
And the streets… The roads were paved with a new coat of cement. No cracks or bits falling away.  
With the lights and music, it all gave her familiar sense, like she'd just stepped inside the Vegas strip all over again. Yet, it was alien to the wastelander at the same time. The music was very much different, and the lights often changed color after a few seconds.

"Freeze!" someone shouted behind her. Breaking the sense of awe she'd had. Slowly, she turned her armored body to face two men, dressed in matching uniforms. Both pointed some kind of firearm at her, though they weren't anything special. The guns resembled a cross between a ten and a nine millimeter pistol. Something Cole would've loved to dissect if he got his hands on one.

She shook her head and focused on the two in front of her. So, _these_ were the pair of voices she'd been listening to while on the ground. For the most part, Lilly was barely threatened by them. Both shook so much that she honestly doubted that they could hit her, even at this range. And even then, she was in a suit of fully modified T-Forty/Five-D power armor.  
So instead of heeding their commands, the wastelander opted to continue looking at the city. Dazzled by something that looked so… _whole_. So untouched.

 _Was this what it was like before the war?_

And then, Lilly saw it. The moon. Shattered into pieces and scattered throughout the expanse of space. Lilly had to blink twice to make sure she wasn't just imagining things. Surely enough, the moon was still there, and it was still _shattered_.

 _What happened?_

"We told you to freeze!" The same voice barked at her.

"W-we're taking you in. D-don't try anything funny while w-we wait for the carrier." The other one stuttered out. Lilly looked back to see the man's hands jittering so badly that he could barely keep the gun trained on her.

Lilly shook her covered head and began walking away from the two. This world was… it was different compared to hers. It felt abnormal. Strange. And maybe just a little _inconceivable_ to her _._  
 _How does one go from a nuclear hellscape, to a fully functioning city such as this?_ It just didn't make any sense to her. And for all she knew, she was the one who _brought_ them here.

 _We'll figure it out later._ Right now, the main thing she needed to do was find Cole, if he was still alive; then they could figure out a way of how to get home.

"We said freeze!"

Lilly heard a shot ring out, followed by the sensation of something impacting hard against her metallic skin with a loud _clang_. Whatever they'd just shot at her, it felt like someone had hit her with a rock. A sizeable one at that.  
Now irritated, the armored girl turned back to face the two men. Materializing her modified laser pistol, she activated her suits on bored VATS system and targeted their weapons. The percentage chance to hit was ninety five, so she let the armor do its work. Watching two, red hot plasma streaks shoot forth and disintegrate the pistols; effectively disarming them.

The two men stared at their hands where their weapons used to be. Sharing a look of surprise and fear, they both nodded in silent agreement before breaking out into a full-on sprint in the opposite direction away from her.

 _Idiots._ She thought. Satisfied that the nuisance had been dealt with.

Lilly turned to continue in the direction she'd chosen to travel, only to be sent flying backwards; landing on a nearby vehicle with a metallic crunch.  
To say she was surprised would be an understatement. To have been thrown so far in full power armor, was, in a figurative sense, impossible. Only a few creatures and some weapons could do something like that, and the odds of coming across those things were often slim.

From where she'd landed, Lilly looked up at the aggressor that had thrown her. Her assailants were… not what she was expecting.

Two girls, both dressed in strange clothing, stood a few feet away from her. One wore a tan vest with gold piping over a yellow, low-cut crop top with a black crest that resembled a burning heart on her left breast. Her vest had puffy cap sleeves that ended with black cuffs, and she wore an orange scarf that was wrapped, rather lazily, around her neck. Around her waist, she wore a brown belt with a buckle, a pouch, and a small banner-like object displaying the same burning heart crest, this one golden in color. She wore black shorts under her belt, which resembled a pleated skirt in the back. Over the short shorts but under the belt was a white, asymmetrical back skirt.  
The only other thing that stood out to the wastelander, besides the girl's attire, was her long yellow hair. As the mane continued down, it grew lighter in color, as well as messier; with long strands sticking out in various places. Her complexion was pale and her lilac eyes stared at Lilly with a hint of amusement. Something Lilly found to be irritating.

The wastelander shifted her gaze to the other girl. A young, silver-eyed teen, dressed in a black blouse, a black waist cincher with red lacing, and a skirt with red trimmings. Completed with a red hooded cloak pinned to the shoulders of her outfit. The cape fluttered gently in the breeze, and for a moment Lilly thought she saw rose petals drifting behind her. The girl's hair, unlike her companions, was more average looking; shoulder-length hair that was black with a red tint to it.

 _Clearly someone has a favorite color._ Lilly thought as she continued to study the two girls. She had VATS run several scans on them; looking for any sign of the weapon that might've thrown her. The only thing the computer found was a metal rectangle strapped to the-girl-in-red's waist, and the other having two metallic gauntlets on her wrists. Neither of which were deemed to be what had thrown her.

"I don't think that was a very nice thing you did there. We can't have giant robots running around town, turning our serving men's weapons into… whatever _that_ is." Yang spoke first. Slamming a plate-covered fist into a palm as she stared at the mech, her eyes glowing with the prospect of a challenge. Tonight had been livelier than usual, and the brawler was grateful for the appearance of the mech. Good. She wanted more.

Ruby chimed in before her sister could go ahead and do something rash, even though she knew it would be pointless to try when Yang was like this: "Uh, Yang? Maybe we should, um, think twice before we go on bothering the giant robot that can vaporize things? I'd, uh, rather not have to explain to dad why my clothes were singed."

Yang spared her sister a glance before a grin crawled onto her face: "Come on sis. It doesn't look _too_ tough. And plus, we'll be doing a civil service by stopping this _thing_ before it has the chance to hurt someone." Yang knew that her stepsister would buy into the hero play. Ruby was always eager to help out in anyway way she could.

For a moment, Ruby was hesitant. _If people got hurt because we didn't do anything, could I live with that? Probably not._ And besides, it was better to deal with smaller problems before they grew… least that's how uncle Qrow saw it.

Letting out a sad sigh, the tiny reaper unsheathed _Crescent Rose_. Moving to stand beside her sister, both girls took on their respective stances in preparation to the mech.

Lilly was, somewhat, unnerved by the small girl carrying the giant scythe. _How could someone so small carry something that cumbersome?_ Outside of her power armor, she could barely manage to lift a lead pipe over her head, yet the-girl-in-red was holding the weapon like it weighed nothing.

 _Strange._ She thought. Shaking her head, Lilly dematerialized the pistol. Trading it in for her custom made _Protonic Inversal Axe_. In reality, the axe was simply a step up from the regular model. The shaft having been made slightly bigger for her armor to wield and an added blade head on the back. She could also shrink down to hold in one hand, or re-extend it for its regular two handed function by giving a twist to the handle.

Ruby stared in awe at the burnt mech's weapon. Never before had she seen something so different, so unique, in person. Most huntsmen and huntresses' weapons were made from dust infused metals, along with their own creativity and ingenuity. Whoever had put that energy axe together must've been a genius, as full-on energy weapons were rare; to be fighting something like it was a, somewhat, pleasant surprise for the weapon fanatic.

Extending her axe to its two handed form, Lilly and the suits computer jointly selected a specific stance that would benefit her in the oncoming fight. Without any background information, the two had to guess which one would be the most effective against the two.  
Her power armor shifted into a stance that they deemed would work best against the two combatants.

Ruby moved first. Speeding forward with her semblance, _Crescent Rose's_ headraised in preparation to deliver a quick and clean sweep to the mech's legs and end the fight before things could get out of hand.

Behind her helmet, Lilly stared wide-eyed as the-girl-in-red charged at her with an abnormal speed. A cloud of rose petals trailing behind her, along with the scythe, the blade poised for attack.  
Thanks to her suits VATS system, Lilly was able to predict when to parry her just before the-girl-in-red's strike could land. Raising the axe handle at the last second to catch the curved blade in the space between her chest plate and axe hilt.

Through her helmet, Lilly heard the small girl let out a squeak. Surprised at having her attack blocked. Clearly the girl had planned on ending the fight quickly and hadn't expected for her to defend herself.

 _Fool mistake._ The wastelander thought smugly. With the scythe head locked around her handle, Lilly shifted her grip so that she could pull until the two heads met. The girl, clad-in-red, tried to withdraw from the lock, only for tension on the energized blade to pull harder on the scythes head. The contact of metal straining against energy caused sparks to spray over the two until Lilly grew annoyed with the girl and delivered a powerful kick to the small girl, pulling away free.

Once she'd recovered, Ruby couldn't do anything but stare in silent horror. Her beloved weapon, _Crescent Rose,_ one of the many things she treasured in the world, lay broken on the ground. The scythe blade had been severed in two, and a metallic boot was firmly planted on the hilted half.

All thought of conflict having left her mind at the sight of her weapon in the state it was. Destroyed so easily. The young girl couldn't help but crumple to her knees, completely oblivious to the mech that towered over her, preparing to cleave her in two.

 _Sorry about this._ Lilly thought. _But I can't let you, or anyone else for that matter, get in my way._ The wastelander raised the axe overhead, ready to put one girl down for good. She would've succeeded, if her computer hadn't detected movement charging straight at her.

Lilly abandoned the motion in favor of blocking the sudden blur of orange that exploded right in front of her. The energized axe head absorbed most of the oncoming damage, though she could still feel the heat that originated from the parried strike.

The girl-in-yellow glared at her through her helmets visor. Her lilac eyes holding a fire that added to their beauty.

"You hit my sister." Lilly heard her growl. "Now I'm gonna break your legs!"

 _So their siblings?_ Lilly faltered in the lock for a split second. Thinking how she really was developing a terrible thing for kin slaying. The wastelander shook her head and resumed the push. _Siblings or no, I can't afford to get distracted while Cole could be out there._

With her renewed resolve, Lilly relinquished one hand on her axe and struck the blonde square in the face. Following the punch with a horizontal swing of the axe that slashed against the blonde's stomach. Except, nothing happened. Where one would usually have a gaping wound with their insides spilling out, the blonde only had a slight burn where the axe had hit.

 _What the hell?_

The blonde charged again, attempting to strike her and ignoring the burn on her abdomen. For each fist the brawler threw, Lilly parried; either with the axe or an armored hand. The latter often leaving an intense burning sensation in the corresponding limb.  
The fight continued like this until Lilly finally found herself fed up with the blonde.

 _Enough of this!_ With that, Lilly grabbed one of the brawler's fists in her giant metal palm and pressed down. Her helmets audio receptors picking up the sound of metal crunching under the force.

"Ah!" the blonde cried. Lilly continued to press down until she heard the girl speak: "Enough!" she shouted. A flare of yellow and red filling Lilly's gaze and momentarily blinding her.

The sudden distraction had left Lilly dazed, and that was all the blonde needed to continue her attack. Following up the explosion with a haymaker and several other strikes all along her torso and head. The pressure from each impact, caused the wastelander to cough blood; sputtering the red substance all over the inner visor and HUD. She could feel heat rise from where the blonde had hit her. The sensation was usually followed by the pressure from the punch.

The blonde continued to hammer down on Lilly's armor. The wastelander's vision becoming nothing more than a blur. Each punch was amplified by a mini explosion, leaving Lilly to do nothing more but take the hits as they came.

Eventually, the strikes stopped. Lilly's blurred vision cleared to the sight of a blazing girl, a burning aura surrounding her and glowing red eyes. The burning girl crocked her right elbow for one final blow, which struck her dead center.

The force from the punch sent her sprawling on her back, dislodging her helmet in the process. The last thing Lilly saw, prior to blacking, out was the broken moon hanging high above them. Her mind swirled with worry for her brother and where they might be before she finally succumbed to unconsciousness.

Panting, Yang stood over the burnt and beaten down mech. Prepared to beat it down _again_ if she needed to. Smoke rose from where she'd struck it in the chest which obscured her vision of the head. The blonde took a tentative step toward it; unsure if the thing would come back life.

It wasn't until that the brawler stepped closer to the upper body, did she see what she had done.

Yang stared down in silent horror at a girl, no older than herself, lying unconscious inside the mech. Her skin was pale, almost porcelain white. Her sliver gray hair framed her face as it sprawled out on the cracked asphalt. Blood covered her chin and trailed down her neck, disappearing into the suit. The girl looked like a broken doll, discarded and abandoned, in the way she laid there. Unmoving…

Yang's panic rose further at the thought that she might've just killed someone. Her breathing became erratic as she kneeled beside the girl and held two fingers to her exposed neck. Upon her touch, Yang found the girl's skin to be silky smooth and warm. Obviously well taken care of.  
For a brief heart pounding second, Yang felt nothing. Then a thump. And another. Very faint, but there. The blonde let out a sigh of relief as she leaned back to land on her rear. Feeling a sense of relief wash over her upon knowing she wasn't a murderer.

 _Thank god…_

The girl suddenly went into a short coughing fit, causing a splatter of blood to cover the front of her burnt armor. Yang stared, slightly horrified at the scene.

 _Keep it together._ She told herself. It wouldn't do for her to lose her cool now. Looking over to Ruby, who was cradling the broken pieces of _Crescent Rose_. Her little sister stared blankly at nothing, still in shock at having her weapon broken.

This left the blonde with a dilemma. Did she save the possibly dying girl in front of her, or leave her here as revenge for the destruction her sister's precious weapon?

For several heart pounding seconds, Yang stared at the girl, debating whether she should help her or leave her here. Eventually, the blonde heard the faint sounds of sirens off in the distance. At that moment, Yang made her choice. Standing up and beginning to rip the metal exoskeleton away.

Cradling the girl in her arms, Yang was surprised to find just how light she really was. Almost as light and as small as Ruby. Turning away from the destroyed suit, the blonde walked in the direction of _Bumblebee._ Stirring Ruby out her mournful stupor with a pat on the shoulder.

The three left the scene, disappearing out of sight just as the cops arrived on scene. Off in the distance, one could hear the sound of a motorcycle speeding off.

 _Several hours later: Inside a small village in the Emerald Forest…_

The first sensation Cole felt when he awoke was pain.

The wastelander's body burned with an unrelenting ach; the slightest twitch was met with discomfort. The familiar buzzing sound he often heard after using the Transportalponder could be heard all around him, and it stung at his ears. He could scarcely think without his body screaming for him to stop.

Through it all, Cole could still hear various things around him, though most of it was incomprehensible due to the pain. Only when he focused past the pain, a practice taught to him by Joshua Graham, and refined by the hardships Ulysses' had put him through, could he hear people talking. The faint sound of music playing in the distance, along with the laughter of a child.  
Through the agony, Cole was aware of it all. But even then, the pain was still prevalent; it often disrupted him just as he was about to make something out of the garbled mess of sounds.

But the strange thing was, whenever the pain became more then he could bear, Cole would feel something akin to a hand gently place itself on his chest and ease his suffering. The hand bringing with it, a soothing feeling that would course though him for a moment; taking away some of the pain and easing him back in to a blissful sleep.

If only he could reach his Pip-Boy, he could get a bottle of irradiated water and heal whatever wounds he had. All his wounds would be gone in a matter of hours and he'd be rid of this pain.  
The radiation wouldn't even bother him. His adventures through the wastes having caused him to develop a mutation of some sorts. Hell, even being _slightly_ irradiated would help.

 _Is this how I am to spend the rest of my days?_ The thought of being bedridden for the rest of his life didn't appeal to the wanderer at all. Cole always thought he'd die in a blaze of glory. Fighting Super Mutants, or Raiders, or, hell, even Deathclaws. All would be preferable compared to lying in bed and waiting to die because of an injury.

The burning sensation itched at his skin again and he groaned loudly. Either from the pain or the itching, he wasn't sure. The only thing the wastelander could do, was grit his teeth, and action that caused more pain to course through him, and do his best to tough it out.  
With nothing better to do, aside from wishing the calming sensation that came with the hand would come and help, the wastelander heaved a heavy, muffled sigh of resignation and closed his eyes. Eventually drifting off and dreaming of the joyful, and painful, memories he had of people from his past.

"… _Dad won't be home…"_

"… _Looking for trouble…?"_

"… _You're a disgrace. Dad would be ashamed of you..."_

"… _You have everything here under control. What the hell do you need me… for…?"_

"… _Pure, clean, water for everyone here in the wastes. Doesn't it sound wonderful...?"_

"… _You're a real shit head. Hope you know that_ dear husband of mine _…"_

"… _From this point forward: you are_ band _from partaking in any Brotherhood operations as of this moment. Eastern_ or _Western…"_

"… _We had a good run, didn't we? Heh. If there is an afterlife, and you'd better hope there is, else I'll haunt your sorry ass… Well… I'll be waiting for ya up there with a bottle of whisky…"_

The fragments of past conversations with, now gone loved ones, flitted in and out of his mind like radio static. They all brought with them, a unique sense of sadness. From his time in the vault, with his family, to their father explaining the project he had abandoned to keep his children safe. Dean eventually kicking him out of the Brotherhood, effectively abandoning him _again_ when he left with their father. And his eventual meeting with 'Rose of Sharon Cassidy.' Their wedding day following soon after… along with her death because of that fucking heart defect…

Cole would have cried at the memory of seeing her in that state, if it weren't for the pain the action would've caused. Instead, he simply laid there, staring blankly into the blacks of his eyelids.

"I think there might be an improvement."

The sound of a soft voice, broke him away from the memories and Cole was grateful for the distraction. The wastelander strained his ears to listen to the voices through his bandages.

"How can you be sure? The way I see it, guy still looks like fried jerky." Another voice, this one gruffer than the last, added in.

He followed the creak of old floor boards until they stopped right next to him.

Then there was light. Blinding light.

Cole clenched his eyes closed as hard as he could. The muscles in his eyelids burning from the action. He kept himself in the dark until he was sure his eyes had adjusted. Slowly, he cracked one open to see the unlikeliest of faces hanging over him.

Unable to help himself, Cole stared wide-eyed up at the face of one of his longest friends. A sad girl who had felt alone, even in a family she'd adored. One who had fought beside him and his sister countless times, only to die a miserable death at the hands of those she'd once called "brothers."

But… how could she be here?

"Veronica?" He croaked out. His voice was muffled from the bandages and his throat aching.

The doppelganger frowned at him. "Excuse me?"

She almost sounded the same as well. Expect softer. Her voice no longer held that saddend pitch that he'd always heard whenever he spoke to the former scribe.

"Veronica's" hands went to his face and loosened the wrappings around his mouth; moving it down just a bit so he could speak.

"There, how's that?" She asked. Smiling down at him expectantly.

Cole still stared up at her, shocked into silence. Everything about her was the same, same brown hair, same brown eyes. She even wore a, somewhat, lavish looking dress, a dream the sad girl had.

Finally he mustered the energy to speak: "Wa…ter…" he croaked out.

The doppelgangers eyes widened and she left his sight for a moment. Returning with a clear glass of water in hand. Gently, she slid a hand under his head and raised his lips to the small mug.  
The refreshing taste of purified water poured down his throat and slowly made its way to his stomach. While he appreciated the gesture, he had hoped these people would've given him irradiated water instead.

 _Would've helped more._ He thought warily. Finishing the glass and having his head placed back down.

"Thinking he ain't fixed entirely yet." The other voice he'd heard moved into view. From his peripheral vision, Cole made out the figure of a beast of a man. Arms as thick as tree logs, and a face covered in a massive dark brown beard. The man's brown eyes peered down at him with concern. "Why don't you give him another dose of Aura, see if that helps?"

Veronica's doppelganger nodded and, after handing off the empty glass, splayed a hand above his chest. Eventually, a white light began to emanate from her palm and spread over him; causing the soothing feeling he'd felt many times before to wash over him. The light slowly faded and the former scribe lookalike stumbled backward, falling into the embrace of the man behind her. She panted hard. As if she had just spent all her energy running a marathon. Whatever it was that she had done had left her drained.

"That'll have to do it for today." The beast man spoke. Steadying the lookalike on her feet. "Go get some rest. I'll watch over our patient here in case anything changes."

The lookalike nodded and, after patting the man's chest, walked to the door and disappeared. Once she was out of sight, the man turned around and spoke to him. His deep voice sending vibrations through Cole's aching chest: "Why don't you and I have a chat? Since you seems to be in the mood for having a conversation." He stated. Walking over to his bedside and pulling out a stool on which he sat.

Cole could see him out of the corner of his eye. He watched him for a time and vice-versa. Mustering up the strength to speak again: "Where… am I…" the bedridden wanderer wheezed out. Each word burned his throat more than the last, and every breath made his ribs feel like they were about to break all over again.

"This here is the village of Talon, a small out cropping settlement in the kingdom of Vale." The man answered simply. Moving his hands in gestures as he spoke. "This here be mine and my wife's home. She's the village healer. Me and a couple other trackers found you half dead outside in the forest. You're lucky to be alive, given the state we found you in."

Cole tried to frown underneath his bandages. The action causing a small ache of pain to burn his face. _Vale?_ _Where in all of the remains that was America was that_? _And village called Talon_? A _forest_? "I don't… understand…"

The man's brow furrowed, his own confusion making itself known. He brought a giant hand to stroke his beard as he thought before he spoke: "Where're you from, stranger?"

Cole opened his mouth to answer but was cut off when pain seized his chest, causing him to stiffen his body. The action caused a domino effect as more pain shot through him; nearly dragging him back into unconsciousness.

"Easy there, easy. Here, drink this." The man held him down while the two waited for the seizure to subside. Once he was sure that Cole wasn't about to spasm anymore, he gently lifted Cole's head and held another glass of water to his burnt lips.

The wastelander gulped it down as he greedily drank. The cold liquid cooling his insides as it traveled down.

"That should help with the pain." The man sighed. Laying Cole's head back down and returning to his seat.

The wastelander could feel his eyelids growing heavy again, the pain from his burns having taken their toll on him. Though the he refused to give in to sleep so easily.  
 _This must be how Joshua feels._ He thought. Idly remembering back on the fabled 'Burned Man' and his advice for treating and living with burns. The wanderer fell back on that advice and breathed a shallow breath. Repeating the action for a while until he refocused on the man.

The man made a polite _ahem_ that brought his attention back to their conversation: "You was about to tell me where you're from?"

Cole would have nodded if it weren't for the pain: "I'm from… far away…" his response was raspy, yet simple. And it kept his identity a secret. If he was somewhere outside of the New Vegas area, then it would be best he let no one know who he was, lest they be allies to his enemies and take advantage of his situation.

The man let out a chuckle: "No kidding. When we found you, you was half way out the door. Body burnt to a crisp, clothes torn to shreds. We's thought you'd already kicked the bucket when we found you." He stopped to chuckle to himself some more. Finding humor in something that was lost on Cole.  
"Yet, sure's enough, you was still kicking. Heart beating like mad actually. Damn near thought the thing was about to burst out of your chest." He stopped again to breathe out a sigh of exasperation.

Cole let out a dry _heh_ before speaking: "I'm… like that…" He shut his eyes after that and listened to the various sounds around him. The buzzing of insects. The creak of the house. Hell, he could almost hear his heart slowly pump blood throughout his body.

"This sort of thing happen to you often?"

Cole would have laughed at the question, but stopped himself before he could cause any more pain. "You… could say… that…" he did his best to give a small smile at the man.

The giant returned the gesture: "Well, I'll leave you to rest." The man slapped his knee and stood, walking to the door. Before he left the room, he turned to face the wastelander one last time.

"Oh, I hope you don't mind my saying, but my wife and I are hoping you'll be willing to repay our little village for our kindness. We don't normally take in outsiders. We've all got a lot of faith riding on you so please don't go mucking it up." With that, he left the room. Closing the door behind him.

Cole listened to the floorboards creak as he went down the hall. Closing his eyes again, the wastelander felt the sandman's embrace tangle around him again. And still with nothing better to do, he let himself slip into a restless sleep. Thoughts of what might've happened to Lilly, plaguing him the whole time.

 **A.N: As you can see, I've updated the fight scene and hopefully made this thing a little easier to read. I'm still working on chapter seven. (At I think around three pages right now?) But with the update for everything to make sense, I'll be working on the past chapters as well.**

 **Unless, of course, you'd like me to just work on CH7 and update the past chapters later? You can answer in the poll I'll be uploading on my user.**

 **Anywho, Ciao everyone!**


	3. Assignment and Healing

**A.N: Just to clarify, if you're one of the few wondering why I wrote Yang to be OP and beat the crap out of Lilly, who was in full power armor in that dreadful fight scene, it's because Ruby was in a state of danger and** **Yang is often seen as this overly-protective-fun-loving big sister in all the Fanfic's I've read.  
So in keeping with that sort of look, I figured that it made sense. I do understand that Aura **_**would**_ **have negated most of the damage done to her and that it takes a little bit of time for Yang to get worked up, and even** _ **then**_ **she still needs to take a few hits from an enemy to redirect that energy into her Semblance.  
What I'm saying is, is that I would expect there to be some oversight on my part that I intend to correct in the rewrite of this when I finish it. (If I finish it)**

 **Also, the wiki, which I frequent quite a bit, points out that Roman Torchwick makes his first appearance in the "Yellow" trailer, which some people, including myself, can infer that the trailer thusly takes place before the Ruby Rose episode.**

 **But as I stated in the launch chapter for this Fic: I will be changing things for the sake of this story. So the first episode of RWBY will have taken place** _ **before**_ **the yellow trailer.**

 **Anywho, now that that's all cleared up, do enjoy this filler of a chapter!**

 _Hours earlier in the city of Vale…_

Ruby stared with a blank expression as she watched the mysterious girl be wheeled off by the paramedics. Her silver eyed gaze followed them until they disappeared behind the sliding doors of the intensive care department.

She hadn't said a word since they'd arrived at the hospital and she continued to be silent as she sat and waited for Yang to finish filling out the paper work for the girl's admission.  
As she waited, she saw all sorts of people come and go. Some walking with crutches and casts around their legs, limping towards the door. Others were forced to sit in wheelchairs, unable to walk at all. Ruby felt uneasy upon seeing so many injured and sick. Idly, rubbing her knees to ease away the discomfort in her legs. The young huntress in training couldn't imagine what it was like to be unable to walk while moving past so many that could.

Ruby's discomfort rose to another level when she saw a woman whose legs had been amputated. The stumps dangling off of the seat. At that moment Ruby stood and turned in a quick motion, heading straight for the door, opting to wait for Yang outside with _Bumblebee_ than spend another minute in there.

As she walked, her unease faded and in its place mixed feelings began bubbling up within the young huntress. Feelings of anger, guilt and sadness. Once she'd reached the motorcycle she sat on the back seat and lost herself within her own thoughts.

On one hand Ruby had felt pity for the people in hospital. Even feeling some remorse over what she and her sister had done to the strange girl, being the ones who had put her in her current condition.  
But after seeing those people without the ability to walk caused the young girl to feel an even greater deal of remorse over the fight. Maybe if they'd tried harder to sort things out by talking rather than fighting then things wouldn't have turned out the way they did. Heck, maybe they could've helped the girl with something instead of knocking her out cold and putting her in the hospital.

But on the other hand she felt unbelievably angry at the girl, as she had destroyed something very precious to her. Ruby had poured so much of herself into designing and building _Crescent Rose_ that to see it so easily broken caused the tiny reaper to feel an ache inside her chest. One she doubted wouldn't go away for a long time.

The conflicting emotions inside her caused the young huntress to hold herself tighter. Her whole body Ruby felt numb, both from the cold of the night and from the loss of her weapon.

 _Did it really have to be like this?_ Ruby's doubt over if they'd done the right thing echoed in her mind. _Couldn't we have done_ something? But then, they hadn't _known_ that there was someone inside the mech. _And it… she… had opened fire on two police officers. She'd broken the law! We did the right thing apprehending her!_  
The huntress in training shook her head and held it in her hands. Arguing with herself wasn't going to get her anywhere.

She heard the sound of sliding doors open and close, hearing the familiar thump of her sister's combat boots on the asphalt. Looking up, she saw Yang sauntering towards her, an exasperated look adorning her face. However, as she drew closer and closer, her expression changed to one of worry. Coming up and taking a seat beside her on the bike.

The two sat in the silence of the night, neither of them knowing what to say about the events that had transpired. For a while they just sat there, listening to the sounds of the city around them. From the sound of cars going by and the electronic trains moving along their tracks, to the music of the Night District booming loudly in the distance.

Yang tried to strike up a conversation, giving a fake cough into her hand, "Some night, huh?" she began awkwardly, "Almost wish they were always this exciting."

Ruby didn't say anything, keeping herself content by simply staring at the sidewalk whilst keeping her hands gripped on her elbows. She felt like crying but no tears came. Through it all she appreciated her sister's attempt at getting her to open up, even if she didn't feel like doing so.

She felt Yang place a hand on her shoulder and shake her gently, "Ruby, are you alright?" the answer to her question must've been plain to see, but Ruby knew that her step-sister would rather have her talk about what was wrong rather than try to pry it out of her. It was the same method their father had used when Summer had been killed.

Her crestfallen sister didn't answer, still staring at nothing in silence. The brawler knew that losing her weapon would affect her but for it to be to this extent…  
With only one last trick up her sleeve, Yang hoped that this last attempt would get her out of this stupor, "Let's rebuild her," Yang played her trump card. Looking away from Ruby and dragging a gloved hand through her long hair in an attempt to make herself appear busy. "I'm sure you must've had _some_ idea's you wanted to add."

Ruby stared at the back of her sister's head in horror. You couldn't _just_ rebuild someone! That wasn't how people worked, at least Ruby was sure that wasn't how. Biology hadn't been her best class. The thought of turning the girl who was in intensive care into a robotic amalgamation terrified the tiny reaper.

Yang finally looked back at her and met her silver eyed gaze, seeing the horrified look Ruby was giving her.

"What?" she asked with the confused tone she always had when she wasn't in on something. "Was it something I said?"

"I'm pretty sure that's not how people work Yang," Ruby shook her head at her sister, trying not to gag. "That girl will be in there for…"

Realization dawned on the blonde's face, "I meant _Crescent Rose!"_ she yelled. Reaching out and grabbing Ruby and holding her in a headlock. A hand poised over her head getting ready to deliver a painful noogie.

The two abruptly stopped when they both felt a buzz from their scrolls. The sisters separated and shared a puzzled look, wondering who could be messaging them. They pulled out their communication devices and opened the message. Both of their expressions changing to one of surprise and shock when they saw just who had messaged them.

 _See me at this location immediately._

 _-O._

Yang gulped the lump in her throat and glanced at Ruby, who seemed to be just as worried, maybe even more so as the young huntress seemed to be shivering in her place. The small moment of joy they shared dashed away by reality. The blonde desperately wanted to reach out and comfort her sister but instead she stood and straddled the motorcycle. Securing her helmet in place and handing Ruby the spare she had. After she'd secured her own, she gave the blonde a shaky nod. The two set off in a flash, _Bumblebee_ kicking up a cloud of dust in the parking lot as they sped off for the location Ozpin wanted to see them.

Yang tried her best to focus on the thrill of the ride. Even though the worry for her sister still hung in the back of her mind, the brawler couldn't help but enjoy the sensation of the wind swirling around her body and through her hair as they weaved around and through traffic. Receiving honks from angry drivers as they zoomed by.

While her sister kept her attention on the road, Ruby watched the lights go whizzing past them. For some odd reason she enjoyed the sensation of the night air flowing around her. It felt just like when she used her semblance to increase her own speed, though without the tiring affects from doing so.  
Usually Ruby was apprehensive when she rode with her sister on her near-death-experience-of-a-motorbike, as the brawler had little to no regard for traffic laws and safety. But tonight it felt different. She didn't feel any of the fear she usually felt, and the feeling of the wind whipping around felt pleasant. The tiny reaper took a deep breath and closed her eyes, the speed of the bike gave her a sense of calm and for a moment she forgot about everything that had happened tonight.

The illusion was shattered when the bike came to a sudden stop. Ruby's body was thrown forward by the force and she slammed into her sisters back. The blonde didn't seem to notice as she sat back, removed her helmet and left it hanging on one of the handles before standing up and dusting herself off.

The young huntress took a second to collect herself and did the same a moment later. Soon both of them stood in front of somewhat odd looking building.

It was built with the old fashioned brick by brick build up, something that Vale had abandoned years ago. Vines grew up all along the walls, adding an interesting design to the already strange architecture. It would have looked rather plain if it weren't for the various types of flowers that bloomed on them, adding a more colorful appearance to the walls than what they were originally.

A dust fuelled lamp illuminated the front door, giving the entrance an ominous glow. From where they stood outside the two sisters could see the interior was dimly lit by way of window.

Yang turned to Ruby, "What d'ya think of this place?" she asked with a hint of amusement.

The tiny reaper honestly didn't know what to think, having seen nothing but the usual modern architecture of Vale for most of her life. Even their own home had been built using modern means. To see something that looked so old felt strange to her, classy as a side note, but still strange.

Now that she looked around, Ruby found them to be standing in a part of Vale she'd never been to before. Trees surrounded them on all sides, only clearing a way for the road which was made of cobblestone, not the normal asphalt that the city used to pave its roads. To her left Ruby could just about see the lights of Vale glowing over the tree line.

"I think it's kinda nice. If not a little creepy," Ruby said with a shrug. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Yang give her own shrug and walk towards the door, Ruby trailing behind her.

The brawler stopped short of the steps and pinched her chin in thought, "Why would Ozpin call us all the way out here?" she asked no one in particular. The blonde tried in a vain attempt to come up with a reason as to why the head master of one of the most prestigious schools in Remnant would bring them to one of the oldest looking houses she'd ever seen.

"Maybe he's just-", before Ruby could finish her response the door to the house creaked open slowly. The two girls froze in place and didn't move an inch as they watched the door open all the way, revealing the silhouette of a person standing in the doorway. The shadow loomed in its place for a few moments, not moving even an inch. The two huntresses in training were unnerved by the unmoving figure and began to slowly back away from the stairs towards the bike.

Ruby had positioned herself behind Yang, who'd activated her gauntlets as they moved backwards. The tiny reaper peaked out from behind her sister's shoulder to see the shadow move, finally stepping out into the light for them to see.

The person who'd caused them to nearly soil themselves was none other than Glynda Goodwitch herself, Professor Ozpin's loyal secretary and one of the best huntress's in the kingdom of Vale. Known for her skill in combat and her competency in training new huntresses and hunters.

The older huntress had her eyes narrowed into a pointed stare. Clearly unamused. She beckoned the two girls to follow her into the house. "It would be rude to keep him waiting for much longer," she said with a dry tone before turning sharply on her heel and disappearing inside the house.

The two girls gulped in air, feeling their hearts beating a mile a minute. They shared a worried look with each other prior to ascending the steps and entering the house.

Once inside, the warmth of the home enveloped them. It felt comfortable compared to the chilling night air they'd just stepped out of. They inhaled the warm atmosphere, detecting the faint scent of coffee which relaxed them further. They were in the right place.

From a room to their left came the familiar voice that the two knew well, "Come in, Miss Rose, Miss Xiao Long," Ozpin's somber tone beckoned them into a rather normal sized kitchen, illuminated by an overhead lamp. The headmaster sat calmly at the table, dressed in his regular green suit and sipping from the mug that he never seemed to put down when in the presence of his students or his peers. His cane leaned against the table within arm's reach and Professor Goodwitch stood silently in the shadows behind him, watching the two girls like a Nevermore observing its prey.

He gave them a warm smile after they were done looking around, "Take a seat, please," he gestured to the two seats in front of him.

Hesitantly, the two girls sat. Sitting across from the man who ran the school they wished to attend filled them with a sense of nervousness, even with the calming effect of the old house. Ruby fidgeted in her spot while Yang restlessly tapped a finger on her thigh. Why they had been called here and what the headmaster wanted to discuss with them was a mystery.

Ruby couldn't shake the feeling that she had gone through this before sitting as calmly as she could why trying not to make eye contact with the professor behind the headmaster. Meanwhile Yang felt the creeping suspicion that they were going to be interrogated or receive a suspension from their admission into the academy. Her small bout of paranoia didn't help her nerves and the tempo of her finger tapping increased.

After taking a drawn out sip from his mug, Ozpin finally spoke, "You two can relax. You're not in any trouble."

The two visibly relaxed after that. Both giving audible sighs. Ruby slumped into her seat before correcting herself and sitting upright with her hands in her lap and Yang placed her elbows on the table leaning forward and waiting for him to speak. The headmaster appreciated that they attempted to keep themselves semi-formal while in his presence. It wasn't necessary, but the gesture made him smile none-the-less.

He cleared his throat and began, "Do you know why I called you here?" he asked. Both gave the answer he expected them to, shaking their heads. He gave them a curt nod and pulled out his scroll, holding the device out in front of them and playing the footage of them fighting the mech from earlier. He watched their reactions as the events replayed before them. He saw Ruby cringe and shrink into her seat at the part when her weapon was destroyed and Yang balled her hands into fists, clenching her jaw. The blonde finally adverted her eyes to her hands in shame when the recording of her began beating on the mech. Finally the video came to a stop, Ozpin having paused it on a close up of the girl they'd fought. Her face beaten and bloodied.

Taking another sip of his coffee he asked them, "Do you know who she is?" The sisters both shook their heads again. He gave a quiet _hmm_ as he shifted the scroll in his hands so it faced him. He stared at the still frame of the unknown girl, thinking. A part of him didn't want to divulge the fact that they had no known information on who this girl was or where she came from. And after everything that had happened in the past two days, what with Ruby being involved in an attempted robbery and Yang participating in a bar brawl, he was even more apprehensive about getting them involved with anything. Especially something like this.

Still… they'd had more interaction with the girl than anyone else, even if it _was_ in just a fight. They'd even gone out of their way to bring her to a hospital once she'd been laid out. That connection was there and Ozpin hopped she would feel somewhat indebted to them and not do something unethical when she woke up. It was a risk but it was a risk he was willing to take if it meant they could learn more about this mysterious stranger.

Deciding, Ozpin laid gave them two options, "I want you to watch over this girl. Both of you have a connection to her now. Something I am hoping you'll be willing to use in this investigation you two will be conducting. Of course, you will still be attending Beacon if you do agree." He paused and took a sip from his mug before continuing, "And of course you can decline if you so wish, as you have no obligation to agree whatsoever."

The sisters gaped at him. Yang's complexion turned a shade whiter and she looked like she was about to punch a hole through the table. Her eyes flickering crimson. Ruby's eyes were wide and the young girl nearly slid off her chair to hide under said table. Their discontent was understandable given the circumstances, however Ozpin _needed_ them to agree to this. If not than things could go wrong very quickly when this girl woke up.

Yang spoke up first, "Excuse me but why us? I'm sure you have people who are bettered suited at dealing with things like this than two uninitiated huntresses in training?" she did her best at keeping her tone as even as possible when she spoke to the headmaster. However her outrage was plain to see for the older man.

Ozpin set his mug aside and gave her an even stare. "I am asking because you two have had more interaction with her than anyone else, even _if_ it was just in a fight. Because of this, I strongly believe that you two would be well suited for the task of… befriending, our strange visitor. And because you have already faced someone who can do _this_ ," he tapped on his scroll and showed them the footage of the girl changing her weapon. The pistol she'd had prior to their fight disappearing in a flash of white light and the axe she'd used taking its place.

Neither of them said anything.

Yang slammed her fist down on the table and began arguing with Ozpin, the temperature in the room rising a few degrees. Ruby shifted her gaze to stare at nothing but the table. The argument fading into background noise as she thought over the consequences if they let someone who could change weapons at a moment's notice walk away. The thought of seeing that girl again, not only in her current state but also having to _befriend_ her when she woke up left the tiny reaper with a familiar hollow feeling in her chest.

But Ozpin had been kind to her. Bumping her up a year so she could go to Beacon with her sister. By all accounts she owed him this.

Giving a rather audible sigh Ruby looked up at the older man, "We'll do it," she stated, cutting through the noise of the argument her sister and the headmaster had been having. Both Yang and Ozpin looked at her with raised eyebrows as she hadn't said anything since the two of them had sat down.

Yang tried to dissuade her, "Ruby we don't have to. We can just leave this whole mess behind and-"

The young huntress raised a hand and cut her sister off before she could protest any further. "I owe him for getting me into Beacon," Ruby tried her best to keep the resignation out of her voice as she looked down at the table a moment then back at Ozpin. "We'll get to know this girl and find out who she is," she cemented the agreement with a nod. She felt somewhat confident that she could manage this task. The hollow feeling from earlier still ached in her chest but Ruby did her best to ignore it and focus on preparing for the task ahead.

The headmaster gave her a small smile of appreciation, "I'm glad we could come to an agreement." Ozpin took his cane in one hand and his mug in the other and stood slowly, gesturing for the two to do so as well. He guided them to the door and wished them well in the task he'd set before them.

"I hope to see the results of your efforts soon, Miss Rose."

The young girl gave him a small nod before trotting down the steps and joining her sister on the bike.

With the two of them gone, Ozpin's shoulders sagged a little, letting a small sigh escape his lips prior to turning to his associate. "I believe you have something to say, Miss Goodwitch?"

The troubled look on her face said enough. Closing his eyes, the old hunter prepared himself for the onslaught that he was sure she had ready for him.

"Is it really such a good idea to get those two involved with this? We know nothing about who this girl is and what she's capable of. What if those two get hurt?" she began.

Ozpin gave the witch a small smile, "I wouldn't have set them on the task if I didn't believe they were incapable of handling themselves," He stated. Glynda gave him a scowl that was as fierce as a Beowulf's snarl.

"It feels reckless," she shook her head at him, "You've already brought that Rose girl into Beacon ahead of the other students from Signal. Now you're putting not only her but her sister into a precarious situation when they haven't even been initiated yet. Not to mention what that girl did to her weapon earlier tonight. Interacting with her could have a negative effect on Miss Rose's-."

"That's enough, Glynda," Ozpin cut the older huntress off in the middle of her tirade. The older huntress fell silent, adverting her eyes to the floor. The headmaster sighed and turned his gaze out a nearby window, staring up at Remnants shattered moon. He only ever did things he felt were in the best interest for the people of Vale or the students of his academy. If he hadn't put Ruby and her sister to the task of learning who this stranger was and instead put another team on it, well, who knew what might've happened?

He knew Glynda was staring at him with that learned look she always gave him when he did something reckless. He knew she had more to say but given how things were, she stayed silent. Simply giving him a tired shrug and walking to the door and leaving him in his solitude.

He heard the door click closed behind him and the old hunter breathed another heavy sigh. Seemed he was doing that more and more these days. He didn't move from his spot by the window, content to stand by the window and admire the evening sky, illuminated by their broken moon.

A peculiar feeling settled in his chest. A sense that things were going to become more interesting than they were now.

He'd just have to wait and see what happened.

 _In the village of Talon…_

Cole breathed in and out, clenching his teeth as he raised his left arm. His body screamed for him to stop but he ignored its protests. His Pip-Boy had thankfully been left on his arm and uncovered by the bandages his saviors had bound him in. Though the wrist mounted computer had been left alone, it was badly damaged. The screen had a massive crack through it and every now and then it would flicker. The casing around the hardware was burnt to a crisp, reveling the circuitry underneath.

" _Can drop a bomb on it and I'm it would still work,"_ Stanly's words came crawling out from a corner of his mind. " _Guess they didn't plan on it surviving being thrown into an incinerating teleporter, huh?"_

He switched to the item's section and scrolled to the aid section. Once he'd found what he was looking for, he materialized a shot of MED-X and a bottle of irradiated water.

Taking the needle in one hand, he pulled a bandage on his arm up a bit, seeing that the skin had closed somewhat but still kept that blackish color. Perhaps his burns were worse than what Joshua had gone through, though Cole didn't feel like he'd been through down into a giant ass pit while on fire.

He felt around for the pulse of a vain finding one just barely. Taking a deep breath, he stuck the needle into the vain and pushed down on the plunger.  
Pain soared up through his arm and screamed inside his head. The agony from it caused him to hear a ringing in his ears and he did his best to keep himself from screaming out. The corner of his vision darkened and he did his best to fight off unconsciousness.

Once the syringe was empty, he pulled off the bandage over his mouth and downed the entire bottle in one go. The liquid burned just as bad as a shot whisky and tasted twice as awful. Even so, he could feel the Rads start to fix his body. The radiation beginning to kill off old cells and remake new ones.

" _Thank you Moira for you and your fucked up experiment,"_ he thought absently through the pain. If it hadn't been for the slightly crazed inventor, Cole doubted he would have survived as long as he had in wastes. Thanks to her, dying from radiation poisoning was now nearly impossible, and like a ghoul the radiation healed him. Only causing a bit of "discomfort" as it did so.

The brunt wastelander tried to relax into the bed, waiting. The pain eventually dragged him back into unconsciousness and he dreamed a dreamless sleep.

When he awoke, it was morning outside. The sun peaked through his blinds and the sounds from the village filtered into his room. Shifting around a bit, he pulled off one of the bandages on his arms and found the skin to healed. The burns having faded away completely in his sleep. Sitting up, he felt a dull ache in his limbs. A regular side effect from healing so much damaged tissue in such a short time. Standing slowly, Cole steadied himself on the night stand feeling his legs shake from the sudden weight. Aside from that everything felt fine.

Once he was sure that he could stand without falling on his ass, he tore the bandages from his body and felt a sense of satisfaction upon seeing his body healed. His muscles the way they'd been before the accident. He rubbed a hand over his head to find it bare, his hair not being one of the things to come back. He stretched and pulled on his limbs, making sure everything was working the way it should. Cracks and pops sounded from his arms and legs, causing him to wince from the ache they left behind.

Bring up his Pip-Boy, he materialized the stealth suit MKIII that Lilly had made for him long ago; bringing out an old trench coat to wear over it. Content with his appearance, the formerly burnt wastelander walked out the door and into the hallway. The walls were made from a white colored stone and the wooden floorboards creaked under his weight, forcing him to step lightly.

Listening for a moment, Cole heard the faint sound of running water in the distance. Decidedly, he went in its direction and eventually found himself standing in a decently made up kitchen. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the Veronica doppelganger filling a bucket with water from the tap. The wastelander decided to ignore her in favor of studying the photographs on the walls, which covered with pictures and other memorabilia from the houses residents; their lives captured forever within the still frames.

Cole rubbed his chest as he felt a dull ache rise in his heart. The only picture he and his family had ever taken was when Dean had been given a BB gun for his fifteenth birthday and their Dad had taken them down to the makeshift shooting range that he and Jonas had built. The three had gathered around their father and all smiled proudly after Dean had killed a Radroach.

A clang from behind him startled him out of the memory and he turned to see the doppelganger staring at him with wide eyes. After a moment of silence passed between them, the doppelganger running back to the counter and pulling out a knife from a drawer.

He stared at her with a blank expression, "I wouldn't say that's a very polite way to greet someone whose wounds you were attending to," he joked halfheartedly.

She glared at him, clearly unamused. "Who are you?" she pointed the knife at him, "And don't lie to me."

Cole held up his hands and gave her a disarming smile. "I'm your patient," he answered.

Her glare intensified, "I said don't lie to me!" she took a step toward him and stopped abruptly. "What's on your wrist?" she pointed the knife at the arm that held his Pip-Boy.

Cole frowned at her inquiry and showed her the damaged device. Her once confused expression changed to one of realization.  
She stared at him with wide eyes, "So you were telling the truth… But… how are you up so soon? Your burns should have left you bedridden for months, even with Aura healing." Her tone was shaky and Cole did his best to defuse the situation before things could escalate again. Giving her a smile that could charm a Mole rat. He should know, he's done it once. He kept his hands raised and kept good distance from her, the last thing he wanted was to aggravate her into trying to gut him and then going out to the rest of the village proclaiming that there was a strange man in her house. The usually never went over well.

"Let's just say I heal pretty fast under the conditions," He affirmed, "Not that I don't appreciate what you and your husband have done for me."

The doppelganger continued to stare at him, her eyes conveyed her suspicions of seeing him up so soon. From what she'd found when she was treating him, the man had no aura what-so-ever. She had figured because of that he would be bedridden for a longer period of time, maybe even a year given the state he was in. For him to heal so quickly and to see him up and walking was… well…

"What-did-you-do-and-how-did-you-do-it?" she blurted out way too fast for either of them to understand. If this man had some way of healing so quickly then maybe they could use it on people who needed help.

Cole's brow furrowed in confusion, shaking his head he said, "It's… kinda long story. One I'm sure you wouldn't believe even if I told you. And sadly, I don't have the time to tell it," he scratched the back of his bald head while taking a moment to collect himself, "Now I know this may seem kinda strange and obvious, but I'm not really from around here and could do with some help… again." He gave her a sheepish smile in hopes that she'd be willing to help him some more.

For a minute he was sure she was about to throw him out. But slowly and surely the knife in her hands lowered until it rested on the counter top.  
Her brown eyes returned to looking into his greys and she spoke, "I'll help you, but you gotta tell me how you healed so fast. Feel free to sit at the table here and wait while I clean this mess up, then we can talk," her eyes never left his when she spoke, a trait that her counterpart hadn't shared. Unlike the Veronica he knew, this one looked him in the eye without a trace of nervousness and did mumble when she spoke.

"It's a deal," Cole inclined his head to her in thanks and moved to sit at the wooden table. Sitting on a wooden chair which creaked under his weight, causing him to shift uncomfortably till he found the right spot.

The girl came around minutes later and sat opposite of him, the knife poorly concealed against her forearm. He folded his hands neatly in front of him, a polite gesture he'd learnt while dealing with the various factions of the Mojave. He studied her again for a brief moment, still somewhat bewilder at how the girl in front of him looked so much like the former BoS scribe that he'd traveled with, but he didn't say a word about it.

"I don't think we've been formally introduced," He started. Swallowing the lump in his throat as he held out a gloved hand, "my name's Cole."

She reached out and took his hand, the small appendage squeezing his hand with surprising strength. "Amelia," she said with an even tone, "Amelia Santangelo."

Cole slightly stiffened at her last name but kept silent, "A pleasure, Miss Santangelo." He let go of her hand and resumed his position.

"Likewise Mister Cole. Now, you were going to tell me how you could heal yourself so fast?"

He tipped his head to her, "That I was, Miss Santangelo. You might want to get comfortable as this will take a while."

 **A.N: I hope that wasn't** _ **too**_ **boring. People seem to be really interested in this Fic and I would hate to let them down. Next chapter: Cole will begin heading towards Vale, possibly meeting a new friend? And Ruby will rebuild** _ **Crescent Rose**_ **whilst preparing for initiation.**

 **Anywho, let me know what you guys thought of Ozpin. I do know we don't see him have a house so I'd just like to clarify that it's a safe house, not his actual place.**

 **Also, I am gonna tell you guys straight up, I'm fifty-fifty on giving Ruby a new type of scythe or not. I've already added fuel to the flame by breaking the first one so I'm deciding on whether or not to do it.**

 **Lemme know what you guys think and I'll see you in, say, a few weeks at best?**


	4. Quest and Preparation

**A.N: Guess what? Another chapter! Sorry for the long wait it's just that a lot happened in my life all at once. My GF dumped me, my antidepressants began failing me and needed an increase. I was locked up in the psych ward for suicidal depression for two days and… Like I said, A LOT. But through it all, I've managed to keep this up.**

 **Also, I think I got the continuity error in my plot all figured out; though it will be edited in the rewrite of this when (if) I finish this and don't run into a road block.**

 **Here's how it goes: The episode "Ruby Rose" takes place** _ **before**_ **the "Yellow Trailer" (I.E the robbery and the bar fight take place in two different nights.) The chapter "Arrival" where Yang and Ruby fight Lilly takes place** _ **after**_ **the "Yellow Trailer". The part where Cole wakes up and starts healing takes at least a whole day so that's the day** _ **after**_ **the night where his twin ends up in the hospital. This chapter takes place during the day where Ruby and Yang are just getting into Beacon so the initiation and the meeting between the two groups will be in the next chapter.**

 **Do note that I** _ **WILL RETCON ALL OF THIS IN THE REWRITE!**_

 **Now that I think I got that mess all out of the way, enjoy the chapter!**

 **(BEWARE! There are some medical terms that I ended up putting in here for the sake of the story.)**

"… but now you know why and how I heal as fast as I do." Cole finished. Taking a sip of tea Veronica's doppelganger had been kind enough to bring him. The girl, Amelia, just looked at him with a blank stare. In her eyes he could see she was processing everything that he'd told her.

After the long drawn out silence, the village healer put down her own cup and finally spoke. "That sounds… well, insane!" she exclaimed with a shaken tone. Holding her head as though she didn't want to believe him.

The wastelander chuckled at her reaction. "Well, you wanted to know. That is my story." He gave her a nonchalant shrug of the shoulders as if it didn't bother him; still watching the girl in front of him whilst taking another sip. Behind his friendly demeanor, Cole didn't blame her for the reaction she'd given him. Even though he'd only told her a half-truth, twisting his story so she wouldn't know too much about him and where he'd come from; If he had told her where he'd _really_ come from, well… Cole knew her reaction wouldn't be as "understanding" as it was.  
Any sane person would think that a world that had destroyed itself would be impossible to live in; let alone for them to still possess technology to transport someone from said world to this one and still be alive. But here he was, sitting in front of her as living testament to his sister's experiment. All he needed for Amelia to do was believe his story and not go shouting from the rooftops that he was an outsider in every sense of the word.

He set down his tea cup and mulled over what she had told him of her own world. A deal the two had made, in exchange for him telling her of his world, she would tell him of hers. Amelia had given him a brief history lesson on the world of Remnant, apparently this world's version of Earth. The continents were divided by Kingdoms and the one he was currently in was Vale; known for its prestigious academy of training youths into huntresses and huntsmen, and the vast shipping fleet it possessed. She'd explained the use of an element known as "Dust" and how it was used to help battle the creatures known as "Grimm". Although it also helped in making life simpler for peoples everyday lives.

" _Much like uranium in our world."_ He thought silently. Except this Dust didn't seem to have the extreme destructive capabilities, nor the hazardous health risks, like the radioactive material their world had come to rely upon so much. _"Still, we're more alike than I would have thought."_

Amelia continued to stay silent. Content to simply rub the sides of her head while she thought over everything the man in front of her had just said.

Cole, his father hadn't given him nor his twin a last name after their mother died in child birth, had explained to her how he had been a forced test subject in the government's sick twisted experiment after his father had been killed. Their work was on something called "mutagens;" some type of genetic body enhancement that was meant to increase strength and agility. He'd went on to tell her how people were forced to live underground because the surface was uninhabitable, having been destroyed by something called "atomic fire" and that almost everywhere underground was under permanent martial law. He eventually told her how they'd forced him and his sister into becoming lab rats for some kind of experimental teleportation device and that was why they'd found him so badly burnt.

His whole story sounded so strange to her, and yet, she couldn't help but feel sympathy for Cole. The man had gone through so much in life and was still alive, unbroken by the challenges life had thrown at him.  
She lowered her hands to hold her teacup and stared down into the brown liquid. A thought occurred to her and she asked her question with hesitation. "Where… do you think your sister could be?" she didn't have the stomach to look him in the eye when she spoke.

Amelia's question had caught the wastelander somewhat off guard. Cole had, of course, given plenty of thought as to where Lilly might be throughout his time confined to his sick bed. Even in his sleep nightmares had plagued him with what might've happened to her.  
Given the new information he now had, the wastelander had to consider _where_ his counterpart could be. Remnant wasn't as small as their broken continent of America. He'd also given thought as to what condition she could be in. Was she like him? A half burnt corpse rotting away somewhere? The questions and worries he had plagued him. Eventually Cole turned his fear in to fuel his, stoking his determination to find her that much more.

He stared at a spot on the table for a time, unsure of how to answer her question. "I don't know." He finally said in a soft tone. Cole tried his best to keep the worry from over taking him. Turning his head to look out the window, he gazed out at the greenery that covered Amelia's world. The sky was painted a shade of blue he'd only seen in picture books when he was. "But I intend to find her, wherever she might be," he stated. Looking back at Amelia who was now looking at him with a blank expression.

The healer adverted her gaze and idly toyed with the cup in her hands. "But what if she's…" Amelia didn't finish her sentence though both of them knew what she meant. She could feel Cole's eyes on her and it caused her to squirm in her spot. They both remained silent, neither one wanted to think about the prospect of a family member possibly being lost.

Footsteps from outside drew their attention away from the morbid topic. They heard the door open and the man that had stayed at Cole's bedside came around the corner. "Amy, I'm home~!" he sang out, his voice more of a rumble than anything else. He stopped short upon seeing the wastelander sitting at their table. "Who's this?"

Cole detected the suspicion behind the man's voice; the wastelander saw it clearly through the thin veil of his calm demeanor. Deciding to defuse the situation quickly before things could get out of hand, the wastelander stood and turned to him in full, sticking out his hand as he spoke.  
"My name's Cole. I'm the guy you found burnt to a crisp in the forest." He introduced himself. Now that Cole stood in front of him, he was amazed to see that he barely came up to the man's chin, even with his boots giving him a few extra inches.

The man eyed both the wastelander and his outstretched hand mistrustfully. Opting to look over Coles shoulder at Amelia who seemed to do something that eased his suspicion, if only by a bit.

The bear of a man then took his hand, the paw nearly enveloping the limb entirely. "Quint Santangelo." Quint greeted. Giving Coles hand a firm squeeze, expecting to see the stranger crumple from the pain. He was surprised to see Cole hold his own, not even flinching a bit and returning the pressure he'd put on the his hand twofold.  
They let go of each other and Quint rubbed his hand, massaging the ache the stranger had left.  
"That's some grip you got there," he commented. For a moment there was a heavy silence between them until Amelia moved to stand beside the two, subtly stopping any possibility of a fight before one could begin.

"Interesting to see you up so soon, Cole." Quint remarked. Raising an eyebrow as the man simply responded with a grin. Even though he'd been the one to rescue him when he was laid out in the forest, something about Cole rubbed the villager in a wrong kind of way. A feeling he didn't really know how to describe.

The wastelanders grin widened. "I'm like that." Cole repeated the phrase he'd said earlier to Amelia. The healer let out an exasperated sigh which caused Cole to chuckle from her reaction.

"Must you always be so brief with your answers?" she questioned, her tone filled with annoyance. Cole simply smiled at her, causing the healer to shake her head again. "We should sit." She gestured to the table. The two men nodded and the three moved to sit at the table. Amelia sitting in between them so she could continue mediating incase anything arose.

Quint leaned forward in his chair, leaning his head on his knuckles before speaking. "So, Cole, how long have you been up?" His inquiry didn't seem to catch the stranger off guard. If anything, he seemed to have been expecting it.

"Since this morning. I've been busy explaining to your wife how I ended up the way I did and how I healed as fast as I did." He answered honestly. The wastelander had few reasons to lie to these people. Unless they asked something about where it was he came from and just how _exactly_ he got here. Aside from those reasons, he tried his best to be as honest as he could with them.

Quint looked to his wife who simply nodded in confirmation. The bear didn't like the idea of a stranger being all alone with his wife for half the day. " _But if all they did was sit and talk then I guess it's alright…"_

He cleared his throat and asked another question. "So what're you gonna be doing now that you're vertical?"

Cole's expression changed at that. The cheerful demeanor he'd had a moment ago faded away and was replaced with a more serious one. "I intend to travel to the city of Vale." he answered in a somber tone.

Quint narrowed his eyes at the man's answer, suspicious of the sudden change. He was clearly hiding something but what it was he didn't know. More so, he detested the fact that he thought he could leave without giving some form of recompense.  
"Vale's a day's hike away from here. And even then, it's too dangerous to travel alone without some sort of escort." The older man explained. "The last caravan left this morning, and the next one won't be here until later next week."

Cole's mood changed drastically at this. "I can't sit around and wait for a week. I have something… urgent, to take care of in the big city." His cryptic answer caused Quint to narrow his eyes at him. The bear obviously thought he was hiding something, and in a way, he did. However he couldn't simply go around telling _everyone_ he ran into that his sister was missing.  
The wastelander knew he sounded desperate, and he was. But he couldn't afford to stick around in one place while Lilly was out there, in this strange world, possibly hurt… or worse.

"Whatever it is, I'm sure it can wait until you've paid what we're owed." Quint said plainly. He wasn't about to let someone off the hook after he and his wife had gone out of their way to help them. After Cole had paid his dues, then he could go for all the bear cared.

The two men stared each other down. A silent battle of wills taking place between them.  
For a heart pounding moment, it seemed like her husband and Cole would come to blows. The standoff between them was so intense that she could feel the weight of the air around her. Had she not stepped in, Amelia was sure the two men would have torn each other apart.

"His sister is missing." She said softly.

And in a flash, the tension in the air significantly lowered. Both men now looked at her; Cole with a blank expression, although his eyes conveyed more then what he let on physically. Her husband stared at her with a stunned expression, he clearly wasn't expecting that sort of thing.

The healer looked down at her hands on the table and didn't look up for some time. During their conversation, Cole had asked her not to reveal anything he told her to anyone else, even her husband. She'd found it strange but she'd agreed to his request.  
But surely there wasn't any harm in telling Quint about Cole's missing twin, right?

The older man slowly turned to look at the wastelander. "Is this true?" he asked. His tone was soft but still held an edge that left no room for him to try and persuade the bear otherwise.

With no alternative, other than shoot up the place, Cole gave him his answer.  
"Lilly could be out there, just like how I was, or worse." He paused to gauge Quints reaction, "That's why I have to get to the city as soon as possible. Someone there might know something." Cole did his best to put as much sincerity into his voice as he could. If he didn't, tensions were sure to arise once more.

The bears shoulder's sagged and the hard look he'd had in his eyes faded completely. Quint knew what it was like to lose family; having lost his mother and father to a White Fang attack and a younger brother to Grimm some years ago. Amelia reached out and took his hand, an attempt at comforting him. He gripped her small hand in his and held it gently, running a thumb over her knuckles as he fought to keep the memories from bubbling up.

He finally let out a sigh, pulling a reign on his emotions. Returning his gaze to Cole, he spoke. "Alright." he conceded, "I'll let you go look for your sister's sake. But you better come back sometime and help us, else I won't forgive you."

The wastelander gave a grateful nod. "You can count on it." The three stood up and moved for the door. Before they left, Amelia grabbed Cole by the shoulder and stopped him.

"You'll need some supplies. It's a long walk from here to the big city and I'd feel better if you took some supplies. Wait here." Veronica's lookalike darted off into the house. Moments later the two men heard sounds of pots clanging and a string of curses, causing them to share a slightly concerned look. Finally the healer came around the corner carrying several small packages bound and wrapped together in some kind of leather.

"This is just some bear and wolf meat we had leftover. Along with a small jug of milk that should last you a day at the least." She held out the packages and Cole took them gracefully; giving a smile of his appreciation.

"Thank you. I promise I will return when I can." He inclined his head to both of them and turned to open the door, balancing the supplies in one hand.

Upon stepping outside, Cole had to pause and take a moment to drink in everything he saw. Sure he'd seen the greenery when he and Amelia had sat at the table, but to actually _see_ this amount of plant life up close like this; and in such a vast amount! Even though he'd seen plant life multiple times in small pockets in the wasteland, this… this was different compared to those brief instances.

"You alright?" he heard Quint ask behind him.

Cole shook himself out of his stupor and nodded. "Yeah… yeah I'm good." They descended the steps and upon reaching the fresh ground Cole stumbled for the first few steps. Walking on fresh earth that wasn't hardened by atomic fire felt strange. It was prone to shifting ever so slightly under his weight wherever he stepped.

Quint helped to keep him steady so he wouldn't fall over. "You sure you're okay to travel?" he asked.

Cole gave him a nod. "Yeah, it's just… we don't have ground like this where I'm from." Once he'd finally caught his balance, the trio began walking in the direction of the gate.

While they walked, Cole took in everything around him. He saw the thriving community, all sorts of people moving around them, all doing something that must've aided the village in one way or another. Children ran around in clean clothes, ones that actually fit.  
As they went, some of the villagers stared at him while they passed, others whispered and for a brief moment Cole felt self-conscious about his bald head.

 _Hopefully it'll grow back._ They eventually came to a gate made of wood and reinforced with metal. Two sentries stood guard with rifles. Once they were close enough Quint shouted out to the two men.

"Open her up!" he called out. The two turned to see who was yelling at them and upon seeing the bear of a man, scurried to the levers that would open the gates.

"Vale is north, northwest of the Emerald Forest, where you are now." Quint began while they watched the gate slowly split in two, "Be careful of the Grimm, especially at night as they're more active." Cole nodded and made a mental note of everything the man said. "If it becomes too dangerous to sleep on the ground, climb a tree and hunker down. Make sure to climb to a decent height else the Beowolves will still have a shot of getting ya'." By now the gate was fully open. The sentries resumed their positions and took aim as they watched for any sign of movement from the forest line.

"Watch for Ursa as they have a tendency to sneak up on you. They might be slow but that doesn't mean they can't do some serious damage if you get hit." Quint continued, "And a Nevermore can swoop down and pluck you off the ground when you're in the open. Keep your eyes and ears open at all times." He gave Cole a hard smack on the back which caused the wastelander to stagger a bit. "Good luck with your search."

With that, the wastelander set off on his journey. Following in the direction that Quint had pointed him in. Once he was far enough outside the wall he heard the gate close behind him.

Cole walked right up to the tree line and stopped. Staring into the dark, beast infested forest in front of him felt more intimidating than any abandoned vault or ruin he'd explored in his whole life. That said, he wasn't about to give up and leave his sister all alone in this strange new world. Dematerializing the supplies in his hands, he took a deep breath and broke through the flora; stepping into a whole other world entirely.

All around him there was noise; a huge difference compared to the wasteland, which was constantly influx with long drawn out silences or the sound of gunshots in every direction. The air itself was cleaner in here. It didn't leave a bitter taste in his mouth and instead it made his lungs feel lighter than when he breathed in the irradiated air back home.  
"Is this what the world was like back then?" He asked himself as he stepped through a bush and into a small clearing. The sun peaked through the tree branches and illuminated the area, giving him a brief sense of serenity at the sight of the flora within. This small area was filled with a verity of flowers, all of which were different colors. Reds, blues, purples, oranges; they were all there.

The moment of peace was interrupted by the sound of rustling to the far left. The presence of something looming behind the brush caused Cole to crouch low activate his suits helmet. The casing enclosed around his head and obscured his vision. A second later the view he'd had a moment ago appeared along with the HUD giving him a reading on his vitals and the threshold of the suits armor.

The artificial intelligence that Lilly had ported over from the stealth suit MKII spoke up as well. "Hello Cole. It has been approximately four weeks since you have last worn me. Did I do something bad?" The synthetic voice asked in a worried tone.

"No, Samantha. You didn't do anything wrong." He replied reassuringly, "I need you to scan the area over there for any traces of life." He pointed to where he'd heard the disturbance.

"Right away!" she chirped. The view inside his helmet changed as Sam sent out a pulse. An infrared image appeared where he'd heard the noise; what looked to be a wolf, minding its business, was hidden behind the bush. He ordered Samantha to change the view back and stood up, sighing to himself while doing so. This place, the forest, had him on edge. He wasn't used to being around so much life and not have it trying to kill him. Well, not yet anyways.

"Shall I prepare for engagement?" Sam asked somewhat excitedly.

"No. I'd rather not waste our supplies fighting the local fauna. We'll find a way around." He turned around ready to leave the small clearing but was stopped by the sight of… something.

It looked like your average Yao guai, except with thick, black fur covering its body, and much larger and stockier than the average bear. Bony spikes pointed outwards on its back and legs and a white, bone-like mask covered its face; decorated with red, tribal like detailing.

The bear sniffed the air for a moment and its red eyes stared at him through the bone mask. It seemed unsure of what to make of the wastelander that stood before it. After sniffing the air for a last time, the armored bear propelled itself forward; charging him.

 _Uh-oh._

"Threat detected!"

Cole narrowly ducked under the clawed limb and took two steps backwards. He glared at the beast behind his helmet. Materializing his ranger sequoia in his left hand he took aim at the things head. He let off two shots and sidestepped to the left as the beast made for another charge, seemingly undeterred by the pistols regular rounds.

 _Let's try these then._ He unloaded the bullets and replaced them with his custom armor piercing rounds. These were made to penetrate thick armor and then explode seconds later. Something he always prided himself on was his quick reflexes and ingenuity. Even if he wasn't as smart as Lilly when it came to the science-y stuff.

The spiked Yao Guai was just about turned to fully face him when he let off the first three shots into its hide. It seemed to wince as the rounds pierced its hide. It then let out a roar of pain as the bullets exploded inside of it, causing blackish red blood to spew out from the wounds, splattering all over the flowers.

"That's not exactly normal." He commented as the bear corrected itself and charged again. He prepared to dodge like he'd done the last time, however just as he went for it, the earth underneath him shifted; allowing the beast to get a hit on him. The force it had used in its attack had been enough to send him flying into a tree, knocking the wind out of him. He staggered to his feet as fast as he could and felt at his side. The talon had torn through his coat but the fabric of his armor had held together, keeping the claw from ripping into his flesh.

"Minor damage on the left. Administering MED-X." Cole felt the drugs flow into his system and lessen the pain by a small margin. Even though the attack hadn't priced the skin, the force that it'd hit him with and the impact with the tree hurt like a bitch.

He readied himself for round three and instead of waiting for it to come to him he charged the monster. Materializing his industrial hand and feinting to the left, the beast readied its claw to hit him again. Reacting in the split second he had before the blow landed, he shifted his body and propelled himself into the beast. Burying the saw blade deep into its chest, causing the blackish blood that coursed through its vein's to pour over him; obscuring his vision. Without waiting for Sam to clear his view, he pushed forward and moved underneath it, trailing the saw hand behind him as he went. He rolled to his right when he felt the weight of the beast bearing down on him.

"Clear HUD." He ordered. The substance covering his helmet was removed by way of electric vaporization. When it was fully cleared away, Cole beard witness to his handiwork.

The wastelander had effectively disemboweled the beast. Its guts were strewn about the place and its blood stained the once colorful bed of flowers. It wasn't the grisly sight of his work that disturbed him though. What bothered him was that the beast appeared to be _evaporating_. Black and red flakes rose up from the corpse and dissipated into nothing.

"What in the-." He was effectively cut off as he was sent flying out of the clearing.  
His flight was made short as his body impacted with another tree. Several of his bones made a loud _crack_ that resonated throughout the forest as his body collided with the tree. His head spun and the corners of his vision darkened; his body once again threatened to succumb to unconsciousness from severe pain, but he couldn't let it. To do so would mean death for sure.

Samantha began reporting on the damages that had been caused, "Severe damage detected. Several fractures to both pectoral girdle **(shoulder blades)** , major shift in thoracic vertebras **(upper spine)** one through six, and a concussion caused by blunt force to the occipital and parietal bones **(skull).** Administering stimpak and buffout for pain relief."

The relief was almost instantaneous. The drugs eased his pain and gave him the boost he needed to stand. He leaned against the tree he'd hit and saw the thing that had sent him flying.  
A beast that stood on its hind legs, albeit with a slouch. It looked extremely muscular, more so than any Deathclaw he'd encountered. It shared the bone like mask and spikes that the bear had. The wastelander was beginning to suspect that _these_ were the creatures of Grimm that Amelia and Quint had told him about.

By this point he was running on adrenaline and the drugs that his suit pumped into his system. His mind slowly began thinking up ways of how he could possibly take this thing down.

It began moving towards him and he glared at the beast behind his helmet. _"Looks like I'll have to improvise."_ He thought.  
Dematerializing his Sequoia and materializing his ballistic fist in its place, the wastelander took a deep breath and dashed forward. The beast began sprinting to meet him halfway, opting to run on all fours. When he was in arms reach of the thing, he slid underneath the lunge intended for his head and slammed the shotgun fist into its gut. The slugs tore through its thick skin and left a sizable hole, though it didn't go all the way through. The pain caused the beast to let out a howl of pain.  
He rolled to his right and the beast struggled to follow him, but he didn't give it the chance. Avoiding its attempt at a grab, he traced the industrial hand across its leg and continued moving to the rear. Once he was behind it, he slammed the ballistic fist down on its back, blowing a hole clean through the beast and into the opening he'd first made.

He waited several long minutes until the monster's body stopped twitching and went still. When it did he wrenched his hand out of it, sparing a distasteful look at his arm as it was covered in the creature's blood.

 _Hopefully… it'll wash out…_ he thought absently.

"Movement detected behind us!" Sam warned. Cole whirled around just in time to barely duck a swipe meant for his head from another one of the furry Deathclaws.

The wastelander did his best at quickstepping away to give himself some distance but the thing kept up with him. Cole hadn't had time to ready himself for another fight and he paid for it with a slash from his left; the attack raked across his chest, fortunately he wasn't lodged through the air like the last two times. Instead the attack had knocked him on his back and the beast took this as an opportunity to pounce on top of him; jaw ready in an attempt to bite into his neck.

He'd just had enough time to catch the thing and keep its maw a few inches from his head. He stared up at the row of serrated teeth that snapped in front of him.  
Out of the corner of his eye, something else drew his attention away from the beast momentarily. Out of nowhere a blue light struck the beast in the back and began emanating from its chest, eventually bursting outside, covering the wastelander in the blackish red blood and leaving a gaping hole that went all the way through. The light stopped just a few inches from Cole's own chest and subsequently faded away. Cole pushed the decaying corpse off of him and stood, not bothering to spare the beast any thought as he began looking around for anything else that might try and attack him.

"Well, well. Colour me impressed." A voice echoed around him, "I didn't think someone with such a peculiar scent would hope to stand against the creatures of Grimm. Yet here you are, victorious." It continued, its tone condescending.

"What… now…" he panted out. The radar in his helmet picked up movement right in front of him but he couldn't see anything.

Unless…

"Up here, silly man." Cole craned his neck, causing himself some discomfort by doing so. Above him, in the tress, he could faintly see the silhouette of someone idly lounging on one of the large branches. The figure slowly stood and jumped down to forest floor, landing on the ground seemingly uninjured from the height they'd just fallen from.

The figure stepped in to the light of the clearing and revealed themselves to be… a young woman? She had fiery orange hair that turned redder and redder as it went; It flowed long down behind her, lazily done up in a ponytail in a half attempt at keeping it orderly. Her attire was… different. She wore leaves that looked to be made of glass and they clung to her body like leather. In her right hand she held something akin to a staff partially made of wood and metal. A blade at one end buried itself into the ground while the same blue light from earlier emanated from a glowing gem on the other.  
The feature that caught his eye the most however were her ears. Two orange protrusions that blended in with the rest of her hair.

Her emerald eyes stared at him with blatant amusement, "Don't get me wrong, I suspected you could handle yourself when I first saw you. But skepticism is a must in these trying times, hmm?" she spoke. Approaching the wastelander, the girl reached out and traced a clawed hand across his chest plate. She stepped around him as if examining something, allowing him to catch a glimpse of her rear before she suddenly stepped in front of him again.

"Very interesting." She grinned a toothy grin, flashing her fangs at him.

Cole wasn't sure whether she was flirting with him or trying to intimidate. "Who and what are you?" he blurted out.

The woman curled her lip at him as if he'd just offended her. Crossing her arms, "Have you never seen a Faunas before? My, what strange human you are." Her sour expression turned back into a grin and she stepped even closer to him, "But so very interesting."

Cole took a step back from her and let out a tired sigh, his shoulders sagging as the pain began to come creeping back. "Thank you for your help back there." He inclined his head to her in thanks.

The woman pursed her lips, seeming disappointed with his appreciation. "I guess that will have to do." She said with a sigh, "Very well, my name is Igren. Igren Azyan. I am a Faunus living in these Grimm infested wilds. A pleasure." She finished her introduction with a small curtsy.

Cole gave her a blank stare behind his helmet, unimpressed with the show she'd just given him. Not that he wasn't ungrateful for her help just a moment ago, but something about her seemed… off. Like she was trying to hide something with all the spectacle she'd put into her performance.

"You stare as if you're trying to figure something out. Didn't your mother ever teach you it's impolite to-?"

"My mother's been dead for years." He cut her off midsentence. The wastelander briefly caught a glimpse of her remorse but it was soon replaced with the condescending demeanor she'd had before.

"Ah. My sympathies then."

Cole simply gave her deadpanned stare, one she couldn't see due to his helmet. "What do you want?" His question seemed to cause the girl more annoyance as she huffed at him for no obvious reason.

Placing her hands on her hips, spoke as if the question she'd posed, had already been asked. "I wish to know who _you are_ and where you are going." She stopped to re-cross her arms and let her question sink in. "I saw how you handled the Ursa and Beowolf. You seem quite capable of handling yourself. And that trick with the light and your weapons." She gestured to his power fists that he still had on, "fascinating trick."

Cole raised a concealed eyebrow at her, "Why do you want to know where I'm going?"

Her hair bristled at this, her annoyance rising to a fever pitch. "You're the first interesting thing that's crept into this forest in a long while." A sly smile crept onto her face, "I wish to see more interesting things from you." She said with a seductive tone.

The wastelander ignored her attempts at seduction and let out another tired sigh, his shoulders sagging even more; the drugs in his system were beginning to where off and that meant the pain that had been inflicted on his body was slowly returning.  
The sudden ache in his back and head caused him to stumble, only just managing to catch himself on a nearby tree. The corners of his vision darkened and he struggled to keep himself from passing out again.

"Stay awake Cole, else you won't wake up." Samantha warned. He knew the AI was right. Sleeping with a concussion wasn't a good idea.

"Administer stimpak." He ordered and the AI did so. The relief to the pain was instantaneous and he let out a sigh of relief as the pain slowly faded.

"Are you alright?" he heard Igren ask through the haze.

Cole did his best to give her an answer, "I'll be… alright… Look, you say you want to follow me? Fine. But on one condition; help me get to Vale."

"Deal." She agreed without hesitation.

He gave her a curt nod and pushed himself off of the tree he'd been leaning on. "Now… which way is north?" the question caused his new companion to frown. She pinched her chin in thought and then pointed north.

Igren looked back to see him give her another nod and the two began walking. Cole stumbled here and there, but every time she asked if he was alright to move he reassured her that he was fine.

The Faunus smiled to herself. Finally she'd found something that was bound to bring her some amusement for some time. The fox walked happily behind her new companion, watching him correct himself whenever he stumbled.

Secretly, she hoped that he wouldn't die on their way to the big city. That would definitely put a damper on things. It had been _far_ too long since she'd had anything as interesting as him fall into her grasp.

 _That evening in Beacon Academy..._

Ruby tossed and turned in her bedroll, unable to fall asleep. The day had been… well, to say it hadn't been a disaster would be a lie. Yang had ended up abandoning her, then she accidently caused an explosion at the front of the school, which made possibly one of the snobbiest girls she'd ever met to start yelling at her. The feeling of hopelessness of made the young girl curl tighter into the ball she'd wound herself in.

The day hadn't been a _complete_ loss, as she'd managed to make one friend at least. Vomit Bo- Jaune, had been kind enough to give her a hand up when she was down. Helping her with looking around the school grounds, even though he had turned out to be entirely useless in the long run.

" _He's still a friend. That's something… right?"_ Ruby tried desperately to convince herself that the day hadn't been a complete disaster.  
 _"Oh who am I kidding? Today was awful._ " The tiny reaper turned over again and stared at her sisters sleeping figure. The blond had rolled out of her bed roll and was happily drooling all over her pillow. The sight of her sister sleeping blissfully caused Ruby to sigh once again; secretly wishing she could sleep as heavily as her sister did.

" _I guess with everything that's happened it isn't a surprise that I can't sleep,_ " she thought warily. At that moment, the young huntress decided she needed some air. Feeling cramped in room she and the other first years had been stuffed into for their first night at Beacon.  
Siting up, she wearily looked at everyone's' sleeping forms. As quietly as she could, Ruby stood up from her bed roll and stepped around everyone, heading for the balcony doorway while doing her best not to disturb anyone.

"Owe!" someone cried out just before she'd reached the door.

" _So much for quite,"_ the young girl thought absently. "Sorry!" Ruby whispered before quickly stepping outside into the cold night air. Goosebumps instantly arose on her skin and she absently shivered; wishing she'd grabbed her cape before coming outside.

"I guess this'll be fine," she muttered prior to walking to the railing. The huntress in training stared up at Remnants shattered moon. Thinking. She slumped to her knees and huffed out a sigh. " _What am I supposed to do tomorrow without a weapon?"_ A huntress is useless without a weapon. Sure, Ruby had other types of skills like… baking and…  
"What am I going to do?" she murmured. Without Crescent Rose to back her up, Ruby was nothing more than a girl who could move faster than normal. And she doubted her semblance would be of much help without her beloved weapon.

She shook her head and slumped farther down the railing. Looking out to the city of Vale through the bars. The lights shone off in the distance, the sight somehow reminded her of the night she and her sister met their ward. Ruby felt her mood worsen at the thought of the girl who was currently in intensive care.

"Why did this have to happen _now_ of all times?" she whispered. Her eyes watered and she blinked to clear the tears away. She wouldn't break down like this.

"What are you _doing_ out here?! You'll catch your death you dolt!" Ruby heard a familiar voice behind her. The tiny reaper whirled around to see Weiss Schnee through her clouded vision. The girl who she'd mistakenly P'd off with her explosive antics earlier today.

"I-I-I was just getting some air!" Ruby stuttered out. Wiping the unshed tears away before raising her arms to block her face. "I didn't think anyone would notice if I slipped out," the tiny reaper whimpered out.

Through the gap in her arms, she saw the heiress give her a dubious glare. "Of course I would notice. You stepped on my arm, klutz." She said with an annoyed sigh, crossing her arms in the manner she usually did when annoyed.

Ruby muttered out a barely audible sorry, lowering her hands and scratching the back of her neck. She sniffled and wiped at her nose. "I didn't mean to. It was an accident, I swear." She looked up at Weiss through her bangs and could see that the heiress was contemplating whether or not to accept her apology.

"I guess that will have to do," she finally said. Walking closer to the young huntress and sitting next to her. "Why were you out here, really?" she asked.

Ruby fidgeted next to Weiss and didn't speak for a few moments. Sitting next to someone who has yelled at her more times than her dad made the young girl feel a sense of awkwardness she hadn't felt since she'd first arrived at signal.  
Taking a deep breath, Ruby told her the truth. "I couldn't sleep and need someplace to think." She started, "I… have a lot on my mind right now and it's stressing me out a bit."

Weiss gave her a silent nod as she listened.

"I recently lost my weapon and I'm worried about what I'm going to do tomorrow." Ruby continued, "Not to mention that I…" she stopped short before she let slip about the task that Ozpin had given her. Was it okay for her to tell Weiss, a girl she barely even knew, about something like that?

"That you…?" Weiss trailed after her.

Ruby gulped down the lump in her throat. "N-never mind," she stuttered out. Avoiding the heiress' gaze.

She felt Weiss stare at her for a long while. Giving an abrupt _hmp,_ the heiress stood and walked toward the door. Before walking back inside, she turned and spoke; "Don't stay up too late." She called over her shoulder, "Initiation is tomorrow. We all need to be at our best if we want to get through it." With that, the heiress disappeared into the room.

Ruby stared at the ground, contemplating whether or not Weiss actually cared about her or not. Every interaction with the young heiress had been very unpleasant for the tiny reaper; up until this point anyway.

Maybe, just maybe, Weiss cared more then she let on.

 **A.N: Kinda a shitty way to end this chapter but this one has been stuck in editing hell for long enough. Granted I had valid reasons for it taking so long, but hey, at least it's done.**

 **Please R &R and I'll see you in a while.**


	5. Memories, Encounters, and Initiation

_A few years ago…_

" _Aha! Look at what I've found guys! The_ freak _was hiding down here all along!"_ _Wally Mack laughed to himself and the rest of his_ friends _as he pinned Lilly against the wall. Due to her dysphasia, she was unable to call out for help at all; leaving her to the mercy of Butch and his cronies._

" _What should we do with her, Butch?" Wally asked the leader of their small time gang, who stepped forward and inspected their prize._

" _She isn't half bad." Butch commented, "And her brothers are nowhere in sight. What'd say we have some fun?"_

 _Wally grinned at the idea and ripped open Lilly's jumpsuit, exposing her bra covered breasts. The young teen struggled to cover herself but couldn't escape Wally's grasp. One of the lower members of the gang, Paul Hannon Jr she believed, spoke up. "I don't feel comfortable doing this." He said before Wally could continue, looking between him and Butch nervously._

 _Butch spared him an annoyed glance. "What're you, a bitch? No one's around and she can't even speak to tell someone what we've done." Butch gave him a playful smack on the arm, "It'll be fun. How often do you expect to get some down here anyway?"_

 _Paul seemed to consider Butch's words before shaking his head. "I'm not doing this. It's wrong. I won't have any part in this." The younger Hannon turned to leave, "I'll… see you guys around…" he called over his shoulder as he disappeared around the corner._

" _Well screw you Paul!" Butch called after him._

 _Wally turned to console his friend. "Ahhhh. Forget him Butch! More for us!"_

 _The distraction with Paul gave Lilly the chance she needed to kick the distracted teen between the legs. The Tunnel Snake doubled over, clutching his groin as he fell. With Wally on his knees and the position he was in gave Lilly the chance to knee the bastard in the face._

 _A loud cracking sound was heard as her knee collided with his nose, causing blood to splatter over her leg and the teens face and the floor as he dropped unconscious. Butch stared in shock between her and his friend. The look of surprise fading into a glare that he directed at her.  
"You're gonna pay for that you bitch!" He snarled while taking a single step toward her but stopped short; suddenly falling over and revealing her twin to be standing behind him with a wrench. _

_Cole spared a distasteful look at Butch before rushing over and embracing his sister. Holding her so tight that Lilly felt as if she would stop breathing. He let go and held her by the shoulders. "Paul found me and said what was happening. As soon as I heard, I rushed down here as fast as I could." His voice trembled as he spoke, "I'm so sorry I wasn't here sooner…"_

 _Lilly, in the silence of the moment, simply embraced her twin. Glad that Dean had given her those self-defense lessons and that her brother had found her before anything worse could've happened. She didn't want to be left alone. The thought of what Butch and Wally might've done if Cole hadn't shown up… Tears brimmed in her eyes as she began to silently cry in her brother's arms. Never before had she been as scared as she was in that moment, and she was glad that Cole had gotten here as quickly as he had._

 _Cole let go of her, albeit reluctantly, and turned to the two unconscious teens behind them. He moved to prop them up against the wall. Both unconscious and relatively unharmed, though from the looks of it, Wally's nose had been broken._

 _The twins left the scene and slowly made their way back to their apartment,_ _Cole holding Lilly close to him the whole way. Silently the two entered the dim room that was their home. Dean sat on the couch reading a book and their dad was nowhere to be seen. As usual._

 _Their older sibling looked up from his novel as the two entered, his eyes widening upon seeing his sister's state. Jumping to his feet, their older sibling rushed over. "What happened?" he asked, his tone filled to the brim with worry._

 _Cole spared him a glance but didn't say anything as he and Lilly moved to sit on the couch. Once the two were sat he looked up a Dean and explained what had happened._

" _Butch and his cronies tried to rape Lilly." He stated plainly. Watching his older brother's face as the news sunk in. His expression change from one of worry to fury. "Paul didn't want any part of it and instead, he opted to come and find me. As soon as I'd heard, I rushed down to find Wally on the ground and Butch about to-."_

" _I don't want to hear anymore." Dean cut him off. His hands were balled into white knuckled fists and the anger was clear to see plainly on his face. "I'm going to kill that bastard." He muttered under his breath._

 _Cole shook his head at that, "If you do we'll all be thrown out into the wastes." He reminded his brother, which seemed to calm him down only a bit. Though he still kept his hands clenched.  
The older twin let out a tired sigh and looked down at Lilly, who he still held in his arms. Her face was beat red from crying and she sniffled while burrowing her face into his side._

 _He looked back up at his brother and spoke in a calm and clear tone. "Could you please go and get some water and a blanket? I'll stay here with her." Dean hesitated to leave, obviously not wanting to abandon Lilly in time like this. "Don't worry. I'm not going anywhere. I'll stay with her until you get back." Cole reassured. Their older sibling nodded and left to go and grab what Cole had asked for._

 _The older twin turned his attention back to his counterpart. "It's gonna be okay." He whispered to her. Her response was to simply reach out and hold his hand. Clenching the appendage as tight as she could in her near tiny hand. Dean returned with the things he'd asked for. Cole took the blanket from his brother and gently wrapped himself and Lilly; once done, he took the water and helped her drink._

 _She tried to gulp the cold liquid down. "Take small sips. You'll make yourself sick if you gulp the whole thing down." He warned. "Slow down." She didn't listen to him and finished off the glass. Cole took it from her and handed it off to Dean, who set it on the table._

" _Anything else?" Their older sibling asked eagerly._

" _I think we're alright for now." Cole sighed wearily. He'd been just as worried as Dean when he'd brought Lilly in, however the young man felt some relief as he watched Lilly slowly drift off into the Sand Man's embrace._

 _The elder twin looked back up to Dean. "Go and get dad from the clinic. I think he should be here when she wakes up." Dean nodded and hurried off to fetch their father._

 _Except he never came. Lilly would awake to find herself being cradled in her twin's arms, wrapped up in a blanket on the couch._

 _She would poke Cole in the side and the elder twin would sleepily open his eyes. Letting out a yawn, both twins would wearily look about their apartment; everything seemed to be in the exact position it'd been left in the night before._

" _You alright?" she would hear her brother ask. She would give him a nod and the two would slowly untangled themselves from the couch._

" _I guess Dad and Dean aren't back yet." Cole sighed irritably, "Figures." The two would begin to move into the kitchen for some breakfast when a knock would come from their door. A knock that would change their lives forever._

" _Open up in the name of the Overseer!"_

 _Cliffside on the Emerald forest…_

…Ozpin idly sipped his coffee while he watched the new first year students line up in front of him. His left hand toyed with his cane while he waited for them to take their positions. The old hunter's eyes lingered on Ruby as she stood at the far left, at the end of the lineup. Fidgeting in her place as she and the others waited for him to speak. He imagined the young girl was feeling quite nervous without the comfort of her weapon, though she was doing a decent job at hiding her true feelings. The professor felt some pity for her, but was never the less curious to see how the young girl would handle herself in the absence of her scythe.

"Everyone is here." Glynda informed him.  
He gave her a nod and straightened himself, clearing his throat and standing as upright as his age would allow. "For years you have trained to become warriors, and today your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest." He began.

Glynda continued for him. "Now, I'm sure many of you have heard rumors about the assignment of "teams." Well, allow us to put an end to your confusion. Each of you will be given teammates... today."

Each teen reacted in their own way. Some let out groans of despair while others smirked happily to themselves.

"These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon. So it is in your best interest to be paired with someone with whom you can work well." Ozpin interjected between their overdramatic reactions. "That being said, the first person you make eye contact with after landing will be your partner for the next four years. After you've partnered up, make your way to the northern end of the forest. You will meet opposition along the way. Do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path... or you will die."

Glynda nodded beside him. "You will be monitored and graded through the duration of your initiation, but our instructors will not intervene. You will find an abandoned temple at the end of the path containing several relics. Each pair must choose one and return to the top of the cliff. You will guard that item, as well as your standing, and we will grade you appropriately. Are there any questions?"

The blonde student, Jaune Arch if he remembered correctly, nervously raised his hand. "Yeah, um, sir?" he stuttered out. However Ozpin opted to ignore him in favor of moving things along.

"Good! Now, take your positions." Everyone in front of him shifted into a stance. Some striking poses while others preparing for the launch.

Before Mr. Arch could ask his question, the blonde champion was sent flying into the air; screeching all the way. Glynda and Ozpin silently watched the rest of the first years launch into the air. Turning around when the last, being Ruby, was sent into the air.

The headmaster idly took a sip from his mug and peaked over Glynda's shoulder to watch the video feed coming from the cameras scattered throughout the forest. Silently, he pondered just how well they would all do. Given the circumstances one of his students faced, he suspected it to be an interesting feat.

He felt a buzz come from his pocket and raised an eyebrow; who could be bothering him at a time like this? Pulling out his scroll, he opened the message from one of the nurses at the hospital where the strange girl Ruby and her sister had fought was being kept for treatment. The message simply read "she's awake."

 _That's not overtly cryptic of them._ He thought while collapsing the scroll and turning to Glynda. "I'm afraid something has come up. Would you please take over from here?"

His colleague gave him a wicked glared that would stop any kind of Grimm or lesser person in their tracks. "You cannot simply just abandon me to do your work all the time. One of these day you'll have to take some responsibility." She commented, giving an irritated sigh before simply telling him to "Go".

He took her words to heart, giving her grateful nod and left the cliffside for the Bullhead; the old huntsmen's thoughts were filled with excitement and apprehension. He would finally meet this girl that had been able to stand up against not one, but two of his students. His curiosity about what kind of person she was, and what kind of technology she possessed, further fueled his excitement.  
Upon stepping into the Bullhead he ordered the pilot to head over to Vale and within moments they were in the air and heading towards the city.

 _Vale General Hospital…_

Lilly's eyes slowly opened to blinding light shining in on her. The wastelander shut her eyes tight, the light causing her already pounding headache to worsen. She went to lift a hand and wipe at her eyes, only to find a restraint preventing her from doing so. The young girl squinted through the light to see her wrists and ankles bound to what looked like a hospital bed.

Shutting her eyes again, she let out a silent sigh: _'Where am I now?_ ' She thought tiredly, idly pulling on the restraints. The last thing she remembered before passing out was fighting two girls and a shattered moon hanging over her. But that couldn't have possibly been real, right? It was all just a crazy dream that she'd had while she was out. Though the restraints did little to help reassure her otherwise. _'Turns_ _out, I'm actually in the Big Empty and nothing really happened.'_ She thought hopefully, _'They put the restraints on me because I was thrashing around. Cole or one of the brains will come in any second now and let me free.'_ Lilly held on to the hope that it was all a dream, desperately. Her logical mind was unable to concede to the fact that she may actually be in a whole other world entirely.

"Looks like she's finally woken up." A voice said from somewhere in the room. Lilly turned her head, cracking her eyes open just a bit to see a woman dressed in white standing by the door. In her hand she held a device and continued to speak into it. "Go inform the professor, he'll want to know that his patient is up." She tapped something on the device and the blinding light dimmed to a nice shade. Closing the device, the nurse now gave Lilly her full attention. The young girl simply stared silently at the woman; wondering just how she acquired clothes _that_ clean.

The nurse looked like your average hospital attendee. White dress, apron and cap with a red cross on the forefront. A simple face with no definitive features stared at her for a long while. Lilly took the opportunity to study the rest of the room around her. The sheets of her bed where the same sterile white as the nurses dress and the garb that she'd been put in was a light blue.  
Upon noticing her attire, Lilly felt her skin begin to itch and crawl like something moved just underneath the surface. Being exposed so much, even with the thin martial of the garb concealing her bare body, never sat well with the wastelander after her experience with the Vaults smalltime gang. She sorely missed the confines of her modified recon armor and wished to whatever deity that her father believed in would deliver the suit to her… and maybe a bobby pin to go with.

The nurse that was attending to her seemed to take notice of her discomfort and cleared her throat before speaking: "When we finished looking you over we thought it best to get you out of… whatever it was you were wearing." She opened up and looked down at the device in her hand and began typing, reading off whatever information that appeared on the holographic screen.  
"Thus far, you have a clean bill of health. Though we did detect some trace amounts of radiation in your system, which was strange for someone so young to have. We flushed your system so you should be alright, though you may feel a little groggy." Lilly didn't feel anything, aside from the discomfort of being out of her suit. "Something extremely strange we found while performing the examination is… the… um…" The nurse stopped talking and fell silent for a while. Lilly simply laid her head down on the pillow and waited for the woman to continue speaking.

Finally she resumed her report, though she spoke slower as if she couldn't believe whatever the device was telling her: "We found some strange readings coming from inside of you. We tried to perform surgery to see what was causing them, but… your skin was too thick to cut through." She paused at that last bit, seeming to need a moment to process what she'd just read. "And when we did cut through, you skin healed too fast for us to do any real work." Lilly watched as the nurses face turned in to a grimace. "We… also couldn't detect a heartbeat. Same goes for your brain, no signal from there except static." She reclosed the device and looked back to Lilly. "In short, you've done something awful to your body. The surgeons think you shouldn't even be alive."

Lilly lifted her head and stared at the nurse, who fidgeted under the mute girls gaze.

The woman began edging her way toward the door: "I'll… come back when the professor is here." She mumbled before hurrying out.

Only when the door let out a _click_ did the wastelander let out a silent, irritated sigh. Still pulling on the restraints the bound her to the otherwise uncomfortable bed. The nurse could've been kind enough to explain as to _why_ her hands and legs were bound instead of giving her an overview of what Lilly already knew.

' _It must've been because of those two girls.'_ She thought, briefly remembering the fight. Because of the stint involving her and them, the doctors must've restrained her until things could be sorted out.

' _Guess I can only sit and wait for this "Professor" to come by.'_ The thought of being cooped up here didn't sit well with the young wastelander and Lilly pulled on the restraints until they dug into her wrists and ankles. Sighing again, Lilly turned her head to look out the window and saw lay beyond; cementing a fact she didn't want to accept. Seeing buildings that weren't in disrepair and the clear blue sky hanging overhead forced Lilly to realize and accept the one certainty of her situation:

' _I'm_ not _in the Mojave anymore.'_

The door to her room opened again and she turned to see a man who looked younger than he appeared step inside. His outfit was coloured with dark greens and browns. His attire mainly consisted of an unzipped black suit over a buttoned vest and green shirt; his dark-green pants ran the length of his legs almost perfectly, and his black trouser shoes clicked irritably on the floor as he stepped toward the seat on the opposite side of the room. Once seated, Lilly's eyes connected with the man's thin brown ones; both orbs gave nothing away from the other and were equally calm.

"Hello." The man greeted with a polite tilt of his head. His tousled silver hair shifted with the action, and his voice was collected and clear, and sounded almost as soft as silk.

Almost instantly Lilly didn't trust the man. Clearly having entered the room with some ulterior motive. The young wastelander didn't do anything, simply staring at the man with a suspicious gaze. The man's demeanor was friendly, too friendly. Something that she and her brother had learnt never to trust out in the wastes. To do so would mean you'd either end up getting ambushed, kidnapped, or worse if the raiders were in a sadistic mood that day.

"I'm glad to see you have woken up." He continued as he made himself comfortable in the seat. "You had us all quite worried." He stopped to give her a small smile before resuming: "I am professor Ozpin, headmaster of Beacon academy, here in Vale." He introduced.

' _Academy? Vale?'_ Lilly didn't know these names and the strangeness of them further reminded her of the fact she was no longer home.

"Might I know your name?" he asked her, waiting patiently for an answer she couldn't give.

That made Lilly give him a silent laugh.

 _Inside the Emerald Forest…_

' _Gotta find Yang. Gotta find Yang. Gotta find YanggottafindYanggottafindYang.'_ Ruby's mind repeated this singular goal as it raced a mile a minute while she sprinted through the forest. The young huntress had only _just_ managed to pull off a landing strategy, at the expense of a bird and some tree branches. Once she'd landed, Ruby set off at full speed in search of her sister, hoping to find her first before someone else.

The young huntress stopped and glanced upward when she heard the sound of explosions coming from somewhere in the forest. What direction, she couldn't guess.  
Closing her eyes, she focused on the sound and attempted to pinpoint just where it was coming from. Another round rang out from her right and Ruby opened her eyes, sprinting in the direction all the while chanting: _'Please be Yang…'_ inside her head. She saw the flashes of explosives just beyond a bush and Ruby exploded into a clearing to see… Grimm…

…a _lot_ of Grimm…

… A lot of _dead_ Grimm.

Ruby made a full stop, digging her feet into the ground and kicking up dirt as she went. The tiny reaper leapt back into the bushes before she could be seen and stared, wide eyed, at the sheer number of decaying corpses right in front of her. Yet, something was different. None of the Grimm in front of her seemed to notice have been killed by Dust weaponry.

Some of the beasts were alive and were entirely focused on what looked to be two people standing back to back as they stared down the horde of Grimm before them. For a heart pounding moment, everything was silent; the only noise that could be heard was the sound of the forest and the breathing of the Grimm. Ruby watched in silent fascination and horror was she prepared for the slaughter, either of the Grimm or the two people at the center of them.  
In an instant, everything exploded into action. Grimm parts began flying all over the place as Beowolf and Ursa alike charged the two at the center of it all. Limbs scattered in every direction, some flying high up in the air and others landing near the bush Ruby had hidden herself in. From what she could see of the two people, they danced around the beasts as blinding lights flashed and the sounds of explosions were heard seconds after; flash caused a fresh batch of limbs to come flying.

' _What is going on?!'_ Ruby thought as she tried to get a better look at the two people at the center of the slaughter, but due to the sheer amount of carnage, she couldn't make out what was-.

A figure leaped, more like flew, out of the horde and came flying at her. Ruby moved just as the figure crashed into a nearby tree with a loud _crack_. The impact causing the tree to shake and Ruby to cringe from the sound. Surely the person who'd hit the tree was…?  
Ruby didn't finish the thought as a second figure leapt from the horde and sprinted over to where the first one had landed.

Igren looked over Cole who, with her help, slowly stood back up. Leaning against the tree, she heard him say something through his helmet: "You know… I'm getting… real sick… of being thrown…" he panted out. The Faunas gave a small chuckle at that before Cole suddenly lunged at her, tackling her to the ground and barely dodging a claw slice.

The older wastelander rolled off of her and brought out another one of his strange weapons. This one appeared to be a rifle. He fired a shot into the Grimm above them. She watched as the kick-back from the rifle sent a shudder throughout his body. Her close proximity to the shot left her animalistic ears ringing and she clutched them while wincing from the pain. Igren turned her head to the Grimm above to see the beasts head completely gone. What his shot had done and was completely remove the Beowulf's head from its shoulders. The corpse began evaporating and the two stood from the forest floor.

Cole pulled back the bolt on the gun and took aim at the horde of Grimm before them. Firing several shots into the crowd, Igren watched as the bullets tore through their corrupted bodies; the rounds eventually finding a home inside a Grimm at the far back of the horde.

"That's not-." She started only to watch in amazement as the Grimm the bullets had landed in spontaneously exploded: "…bad." She finished, staring wide-eyed at the amount of evaporating corpses before her. Never before had Igren seen so many Grimm felled in such an interesting manner. Indeed she had watched hunters and huntresses perform their duties, however most of their methods required Dust. When she looked at what Cole did, all the blood he spilled and how he went about doing it, she didn't detect a single trace of Dust in all his actions.

This only furthered peaked her curiosity about the man.

Looking back, the Faunus saw her companion simply incline his head to her as he pulled the bolt back on his rifle. Removing the clip and exchanging it with another one with the familiar flash of light she'd come to know when he brought something out of… wherever it was he brought his items from.

Loading the clip and round into the massive sniper rifle, Cole walked calmly towards some of the surviving. Stopping short and turning to her, he said: "You want to take care of these?" he asked in his metallic voice.

Igren grinned at the idea of being able to finally show off. "Ha!" she laughed, "With pleasure." Picking her staff up, she wielded the amalgamation of wood and metal and began channeling the Dust residue around them into the crystal on the top end. The orb began to emit a purple glow which grew brighter and brighter the more residue she focused into it.  
Soon the Grimm surrounded them, though they didn't get any closer. Igren's smile intensified as she spun the staff in a circle above them. A purple cloud spewed forth from the crystal and moved to cover the Grimm. For a moment the beasts didn't react, simply sniffing the cloud. Cole thought whatever Igren had done had failed and took aim, preparing himself for the fight to crawl out of the box they were in.  
Ready for the kickback, Cole hesitated as the Grimm began to howl as their flesh was burned and peeled away, raveling the bone and muscle underneath.

The horde soon dispersed, the survivors abandoning their brothers as they began to decay. The wastelander lowered his rifle and let out a relieved sigh. Turning to Igren, he spoke: "That's not half bad for… whatever it was." He complimented. The "Faunas" as her kind were called, gave him a wide grin. One filled to the brim with satisfaction and pride. Dematerializing his rifle, Cole spoke again: "So, how close are?" he asked her.

Igren pinched her chin in thought, making a quiet _hmmm_ as she looked around them. "We should only be a few miles out," she said. "Soooo… about another days hike at best? We should get there just around by tomorrows nightfall." The Faunus' body tensed up and she stopped speaking, her animal ears perking up out of her mess of hair. "Did you hear that?"

Cole paused, turning the audio receptors in his helmet up. Around him he could hear the forest and all its life… along with the faint sound of someone breathing.  
The two turned in the direction of the sound. His companion gripping her staff tighter and Cole materialized a simple ten millimeter pistol. The two walked until they were at the edge of the clearing they stood in. Bush before them shuffled ever so slightly and Igren pointed the bladed end of her staff at the shrub.

"Come out now!" she demanded.  
The shrub rustled a bit and out stepped a small girl no older than fifteen at best, wearing a bright red cloak and a thick sleeved black colored blouse. "I'm sorry! Please don't hurt me!" the girl squeaked out.

Cole stared at the girl, wide-eyed behind his helmet. _What was a kid doing out here? Shouldn't she have been inside the city walls?_ The wastelander kept his thoughts to himself as he walked up to the girl and kneeled in front of her.  
"What are you doing out here?" he asked her, the synthetic voice of his helmet seemed to frighten her even more and she shied away from him.

Behind him Igren spoke up: "I would hazard a guess, but she must be a student from Beacon." The Faunas said, "Initiation is usually around this time of the year, though this one seems to be too young to be a student there. Soooo…" Igren crouched down beside him, her emerald eyes staring deep into the girls silver ones. "Why don't you tell us what you're doing out here, little one."

The girl seemed to relax in the wild Faunus' presence. She stared at Igren as if in a trance.  
"I-I-I was out here on initiation. W-were looking for our partners and then an old ruin." The girl stuttered out.

Igren smiled at her and reached a hand out. "See? Was that so hard?" she asked while caressing the girl's cheek. "The ruin you're looking for is over there." She pointed in the direction where she and Cole had walked from. The wastelander vaguely remembered the ruins they'd seen when passing through the open space; Igren had advised them to hurry back into the forest in case a Nevermore showed up and plucked them from the ground.

"Go claim your item and then get out of here. This forest is no place for little kids." That seemed to snap the girl out of whatever trance she'd been in. She glared at the Faunus with an anger as if she'd just insulted her mother.

"I'm not a kid! I'm going to be a huntress!" The girl exclaimed.

Igren simply gave her a condescending smile. "I'm sure you are." she said with a shrug, turning her back to them, and walking over to the tree line. "If you're done, we can continue moving. If she's out here to be a huntress, let her prove herself alone."

Cole looked back to the girl then back at Igren. "We can't just _leave_ her here. Especially with all the Grimm." He stated. The Faunus turned to face him, giving the wastelander a cold stare.

"If you want to stay with her, be my guest. But do remember this: you are the one who will have delayed your own journey. The consequences of the decision are yours to bear."

Her words stung Cole, but she was right, even if he didn't want to admit it. He couldn't waste time helping someone out here on their own accord while his sister was out there somewhere. Standing, the wastelander turned his back on the teen and he spoke his farewell over his shoulder.

"I'm sorry. Try to stay safe out here… and good luck." Cole was thankful for his helmet, as he doubted he'd be able to look the girl in the eye. Walking up to Igren, the wastelander gave her a nod and the two disappeared into the tree line; leaving Ruby's line of sight.

The tiny reaper didn't know _what_ to make of everything she'd just saw or what had just happened. One moment, she's watching a slaughter while hiding in a bush, the next she's sitting in the middle of said field while being interrogated by someone who had the same technology as the girl she and Yang had fought few days ago.

' _Just… who was that? What happened?!'_ Ruby thought, try to make sense of what had happened.

"Watch out you dolt!" a familiar voice shouted out. Ruby turned on her spot just in time to see an Ursa charging her. The tiny reaper held up her arms in an attempt to block the blow.

Except it never came.

The young huntress peaked through her arms to see, of all people, Weiss blocking the Ursa with one of her glyphs. The beast pushed with all its strength to break through the ward but to no avail. Ruby could see the strain it put on Weiss and thinking quickly, she grabbed the heiress by the waist and using her semblance, dashed away from the Grimm.

"What do you think you're doing?!" Weiss shrieked at the young huntress. Once they were at a safe distance, Ruby let go of Weiss, who was all too happy to put some distance between her and the tiny reaper.

"I could've taken care of myself!" The heiress hissed at her, crossing her arms in the usual manner she did when angry. "I didn't need your help."

Ruby ignored her as she panted, holding her knees and staring at the Ursa she'd left in her dust. Her mind began running a mile a minute on just how she would deal with the Grimm without her weapon.

"…are you even listening to me?!" she heard Weiss ask her.

Ruby glanced at the pale girl and shook her head: "I think we have bigger problems then arguing right now." Ruby pointed back to the Ursa.

Weiss gave her an _ugh_ as she turned back to the Grimm and dealt with it. Summoning a glyph underneath the Grimm and causing a group of ice spikes to shoot upward, skewering the beast through and ending its life in an instant.

Ruby stared in silent awe at how efficiently the heiress dealt with the Grimm. A pang of guilt shot through her as she felt the helplessness of the situation. In a fight, she was useless. The only thing she could really do was…

A thought occurred to her that made her heart skip a beat.

Turning to Weiss, Ruby realized that the two were now partners…

…for the next four years.

 **A.N: Kinda a filler chapter. I wanted to focus a little bit on Lilly and the Twins past in this one. (Though I probably promised something interesting in the last chapter)**

 **Sorry this one came out late. Life was kicking me in the gut and didn't give me much time to write. (Not to mention I've suffered some writers block while going through the day-to-day feature)**

 **I hope you guys can forgive me for the crap-tastic chapter and I'll (hopefully) see you sometime soon.**

 **Ciao.**


	6. Memories, Encounters, and Initiation:CNT

**A.N: I would like to dedicate this chapter to my cat, my best friend, and father figure who had been with me since the day of my birth.**

 _Inside the Emerald Forest…_

"Come on!"

"No."

"Pleeeeeease?"

"No!"

"Weiss come on!" Ruby begged for what felt like the umpteenth time. And for the umpteenth time, Weiss refused. For the past half-hour, the tiny reaper had followed the heiress through the forest, begging her to take her on as her partner…

' _For the next four years…'_ A part of Ruby reminded. That caused her to stop and think. Maybe it wasn't such a good idea for her and Weiss to be partners? After all, every time Ruby had interacted with her, the heiress had always found some farfetched reason to yell at the younger huntress in training. Even when she hadn't done anything wrong!

But then, Ruby also thought back on their conversation last night. How Weiss had actually come outside in the chilled night air and sat next to her when she didn't have to.  
And even more so: Weiss had been the first person, that-was-from-Vale-and-not-a-complete-stranger-that-she'd-met-in-the-forest-after-they'd-slaughtered-a-massive-number-of-Grimm that Ruby had made "eye contact" with. Professor Ozpin or Miss Goodwitch must've already logged the encounter and sorted them into a team by now.

' _That means she's stuck with me whether she likes or not.'_ Ruby tiredly thought. An idea forming in the aftermath.  
Sighing and straightening herself up as best she could, the tiny reaper gave the back of Weiss a hard stare before speaking: "Look, like it or not, you're stuck with me. The professors have, probably, already logged us into a team together. So I doubt we have much of a choice." She paused to take a breath to calm her nerves. She couldn't afford to lose her cool now.  
"And besides," she continued: "you know I'm out here defenseless. I _need_ someone to watch my back." _'Please, please, please work!_ ' Ruby begged silently. Desperately hoping Weiss would reconsider.  
She knew the heiress was a stickler for rules, so appealing to her on that front would, hopefully, work… at least a tiny bit.

Weiss had stopped and slowly turned to face the annoyance that was following her. Her contorted in an expression that was a cross between surprised and annoyed. The klutz that she had known for only a few hours had _actually_ said something smart. The heiress turned away from her, still wanting to leave.

Instead of moving however, Weiss' mind began thinking over Ruby's words. ' _She_ is _right, of course. Even if I don't want to admit it.'_ She conceded. Her mind idly wandering back to their short conversation on the balcony last night. She'd seen how Ruby had been a frightened mess when faced with the possibly failing initiation. Who was she to deny her a chance to try?  
Glancing back at the young girl, Weiss saw none of that fear or worry she'd expressed the previous night; instead she saw someone who was determined to pass this test and move forward. An admirable endeavor for someone so young.

' _Why couldn't she behave like this more often?'_ Weiss silently asked herself. Letting out a halfhearted sigh, she turned back to Ruby and spoke: "Fine. I'll help you. But you better do as I say when I tell you to."

The serious demeanor that Ruby had worn just a moment ago crumbled away, and in its place, came the usual, hyperactive teenager Weiss had come to despise.

The younger huntress rushed forward and wrapped her arms around the heiress. "Thank-you-thank-you-thank-you-thank-." The tiny reaper repeated until Weiss finally managed to shove her off.

"Alright." She said in her irritated tone. Holding the jumpy teen by the shoulders. "Now let's-." Weiss didn't get the chance to finish her sentence when the sound of someone screaming from somewhere in the distance cut her off. The sound echoed throughout the area they stood in, throwing off any sense of direction of where it could be coming from. The two prepared as best they could, Weiss with her rapier, and Ruby with her fists, the teen putting on the most intimidating expression she could muster.  
They stood back to back and looked in every direction until, all of a sudden, a blur of red and gold came crashing between them; dragging behind it was a figure clad in black, blue, and white and screamed like a girl the whole way until they disappeared back into the bush and off into the distance.

"…go." Weiss finished off uselessly. Staring after the two the way they had gone.

"Uh… Weiss?" The tiny reaper behind her spoke with a slightly fearful tone. Ruby shook her shoulder until the heiress finally turned to see what it was that had Ruby so disturbed.

And she wished, just a tiny bit, that she hadn't looked in the first place.

In the direction from where the two figures had emerged, Weiss saw a Deathstalker barreling towards them. The sight of the giant Grimm made her face paler; more so than it already was.

' _How…? Why…?!'_ Weiss silently questioned the near _insanity_ of the situation they now found themselves in. Forget _near_ , the whole situation _was_ insane. Just who in their right mind would disturb a Deathstalker?! And just _how_ in Dusts sweet name did those two _find_ a Deathstalker?!  
Her mind fell into a sputtering mess as it tried to figure out the whole situation they had inadvertently been thrown into.

Ruby's instincts kicked in at last. Finding her voice and shouting out to Weiss: "Run!" as she turned and ran in the direction the two had gone. Setting off after them in haste. Sprinting in a mad dash as the thundering footsteps of the giant insect gave chase. Encouraging them to run faster.

The two jumped over fallen logs and around shrubs. Each obstacle slowed them down until an idea occurred to Ruby: "Here!" she shouted as she ran up behind Weiss and swept the heiress off her feet. With Weiss in her arms, the tiny reaper used her semblance and dashed away at lightning speed; leaving the Deathstalker in her wake.

The force of the speed caused the air to whip around the heiress' head and whistle in her ears. For a few moments, Weiss shut her eyes tight. Not wanting to risk being blinded by the powerful speed Ruby was running at. But once all the noise around her faded away, the heiress cracked an eye open and soon she looked around in a full, wide-eyed stare. Everything around her had become, what she could only describe as… nothing. Nothing around her had any real shape and everything was a mess of colors. Like she was viewing the world through water. As much as she could, Weiss craned her head to watch as the scenery of the, now, blurred forest zoomed past them like a dreamscape.

And then, it all came to a sudden and still stop. Everything in the world came back into view and returned to normal. Weiss was let down from the younger girls arms and she stood, shakily, on her own legs while trying to catch her bearings. From where she once was running through a heavily, dense forested area, the heiress now stood in an open field with Ruby panting beside her. Looking back in the direction where she and her part-… where Ruby and her, had come from. Weiss saw the forms of who she assumed were Vomit boy, as Ruby had nicknamed him, and Pyrrha; sprinting towards them.

Once they were a quarter of the way to them however, the Deathstalker came bursting out of the trees, not stopping in its charge for even a second. The beast closed in on the two with unnatural speed and Weiss darted forward, using her glyphs to augment her own speed.

"I thought- we'd have- lost that thing-!" Ruby panted out beside her.

"Doesn't look like it." Weiss said between breaths. The two reached Pyrrha and Vomit boy with Weiss blocking a stab from the stinger with a glyph.

Pyrrha unsheathed _Miló_ in its sword form and raised _Akoúo_ in defense while the heiress continued to use _Myrtenaster_ to channel dust into her semblance in an attempt to strengthen the barrier.

"Ruby! Get what's his face out of here!" Weiss shouted at the tiny reaper. Gritting her teeth as the Grimm pushed harder against the glyph. It was a battle of wills between the two and Weiss was losing rapidly.

Ruby had yet to move. The tiny reaper looked between her partner and Jaune. She noticed the cracks that were appearing on the glyph and watched as they spread out in a spider web pattern.

"Now!" Weiss shrieked at her.

Ruby still hesitated. She wanted to help: "B-but…" Weiss heard the younger girl stutter out. The cracks in the barrier finally spread to the edges and shattered the glyph. The heiress spun out of the way, avoiding being impaled by a hair and put some distance between her and the Grimm.

Pyrrha darted forward and parried the stinger with _Akoúo_ before it could impale Jaune; giving Ruby the chance to use her semblance and dash in and grab the blonde warrior before he could be harmed. The two sped off to safety with Vomit boy screaming the whole way.

With the short moment she had before it recovered, Pyrrha quickstepped forward and slashed at the Grimm's two forward eyes with _Milo_. Weiss using a glyph to block the pincers in the process. The beast reeled backwards from the sudden pain and Weiss took the new opportunity to take out the other set of eyes. Quickstepping forward with a glyph, she thrust the blade into one eye socket and then the other in quick succession; piercing out the two glowing orbs.

Quickstepping backwards before the scorpion could ensnare her with its pincers, both girls stood side by side and studied the situation in the small reprieve they had. The beast still had six other eyes that allowed it to see. Fortunately, the Grimm had become disorientated from the sudden loss of sight from its other four. Causing it to sway and stumble every now and then as it tried to catch its bearings.

They glanced at each other and gave a small nod before preparing their respective blades. They only managed to take a step when suddenly, from out of nowhere, they heard the sound of someone… shouting…

" _-nnnnnnnnnnn cooooooooooommmmming!"_ They heard until unexpectedly, something akin to a bomb dropped out of the sky and on top of the Deathstalker. A pinkish and yellow explosion blinded them for a moment, though once their vision cleared, they saw what damage whatever the thing had done.  
The ground around the Grimm had exploded into chunks and the lifeless body of the Deathstalker had sunken into the ground a few inches and was slowly beginning to decay. Its bone armor had cracks from the force of impact.

"That was awesome!"

"Can we do it again?!" Two voices, far too happy for what had just occurred, shouted out in joyful tones behind the smokescreen.

Upon the smoke finally clearing, Weiss and Pyrrha were able to catch a glimpse of the culprits. Four people stood at the center of the crater. One was tall with blonde hair that reached down to her lower back. The other girl was shorter with ginger hair and a giant hammer held in her right hand. Beside them stood two other people who held their heads in their hands.

Yang and Nora gave each other high fives while Blake and Ren stood apart from the two. The valkyrie happily rolled on the balls of her feet as she and the blonde brawler continued to congratulate each other on their successful surprise attack. Ren was pinching the bridge of his nose as he attempted to recover from the free fall he'd just been in, while Blake on the other hand, didn't seem affected by it at all and opted to look around as she took in their new surroundings. The hidden Faunas took note of their spectators. Seeing both Weiss and Pyrrha standing above them as they looked on in astonishment.

The red haired champion glanced at Weiss, who merely continued to stare at the crater around the Deathstalker with a perplexed expression. Pyrrha returned her eyes back to the decaying corpse and noticed the four other teens moving towards them. Nora with a skip in her step, while Ren walked calm and smoothly off of the Deathstalker. Yang walked confidently and Blake strolled quietly behind the blonde, keeping an eye out for any other imminent threats to them.

Once Nora's feet were back on Remnant earth, the valkyrie zipped towards the two spectators with a speed almost akin to Ruby's. The sudden appearance of the ginger haired girl in front of the heiress, caused Weiss to stagger backwards out of surprise.

"Hi!" Nora greeted. Beaming with an excited expression as she stared at the Heiress. "Hope you didn't mind us crashing in on the party."

Ren came up behind her and placed a hand on her head. "Nora, you almost got us killed." The teen said coldly. His tone was calm and smooth, yet the two girls couldn't help but detect the chill in his voice, which caused a small shiver to run up and down their spines.

"Aww come on Ren. We survived and took out a massive Grimm in the process." Yang stated as she came up behind the two: "I'd say that wasn't _soooo_ bad, and it was pretty fun too." She finished. Giving Ren a "light" smack on the back. Seemingly oblivious to the chill in Ren's voice.

Blake deadpanned behind her: "Only you and Nora can say that you enjoyed that. Ren and I have… other thoughts, on how "fun" that was." She added in to the argument before falling silent once more.

Yang pursed her lips at her partners comment but didn't reply. Instead, she turned her attention to Weiss and Pyrrha, who looked on as the group of four chatted amongst themselves.

"We… appreciate the help as… _grandiose_ , as it was." Pyrrha chimed in. Choosing her words carefully. "Though I think we should, um, shift our focus to the thing you fell from." She added. Pointing skyward. The group craned their necks to see the Nevermore the group had dropped from. The giant, birdlike Grimm was circling above them, letting out a piercing screech that punctured the air, causing the teens to cover their ears.

' _Well, isn't this just fantastic!'_ Weiss thought sarcastically as she and the others prepared for an extremely tough fight…

 _Off in the distance…_

"You've gotta admit, that stunt with the Nevermore was pretty cool." Jaune vocalized his opinion on the feat her sister had performed. He and Ruby continued to watch the group prepare to deal with the Nevermore. Though tiny reaper didn't say anything. Too lost in her own thoughts to comment on whether the trick with the Grimm was "cool" or not.

In her mind, she was thinking back on the strangers she had encountered before she'd met Weiss. She thought on how they had effectively taken on so many and didn't seem to break a sweat. Even when one of them had taken a hit, they hadn't slowed down.

' _Is that what a huntsman and huntress_ really _look like? Bathed in the blood of humanities enemy?'_ She thought on the two. Her mind continuously wandering back to the man from the encounter.  
Now that she had a moment to sit and think: Ruby couldn't remember, in all the time she had looked at weapons and armor, seeing any kind of suit that resembled what the man had worn. Just like her encounter with the girl in the mech suit, the stranger had used strange weapons as well. But the soul of the problem was that he had used the same trick of the light to change his weapons, just as the girl had done.  
 _'What if their connected somehow?'_ Ruby silently asked herself. _'What if she was his partner, or girlfriend, or something… and we put her into a coma and he's looking for her?'_ And what would happen if he found out she and Yang had done that to her? What would happen then? Would he come after her and Yang? Or would he just take her back to wherever they had came from and leave it at that?

"Uhh, Ruby?"

Jaune's voice broke through the haze that had set upon her. Dragging herself out of her thoughts, she shook her head and looked at him. "What? Sorry, I'm just… thinking." She physically cringed at the lame cover up for her disinterest in the fight.

The blonde warrior merely raised an eyebrow at that: "Looked pretty serious. I tried getting your attention a few times before, but you weren't, uh…" he scratched the back of his head as he tried to think of the right words to use. "…talking back?" he finished meekly.

The Tiny Reaper gave him a small smile, one that seemed to put a few of his worries to rest, if only a bit.

He cleared his throat and attempted to strike up another conversation: "Sooooooo… What were you thinking about?" He asked in the smoothest voice he could manage.

Jaune's innocent inquiry pulled at Ruby's heartstrings. She wanted to tell him, really. But she didn't feel comfortable letting him in on what Ozpin had put her and Yang in charge of.  
A thought occurred to her just then: _'Guess I'll have to tell the professor about… whoever that was when I get back.'_ The somber thought made the knot in the young girls gut twist tighter. Why did this have to happen to her? Couldn't she just have had a normal time at school? Why was she suddenly forced to play supper spy? Yes, she respected Ozpin for, not only being an excellent huntsman, but for also letting her into Beacon earlier than most; even if she had suffered for it only a bit. And the debt she owed him would hang over her head until she graduated.

Or she was killed during her time here.

But it wasn't the possibility she might end up like her mother that bothered her, she'd accepted the risk when she told her dad that she wanted to be a huntress. It was the whole ordeal with the strange girl in armor that made her uncomfortable. It was Ozpin putting her in charge of investigating the-girl-in-armors strange tech. And now it was the appearance of someone, with the same kind of tech, and even stranger armor. This whole task made her uneasy and she was unsure she could handle it.

"Ruby?" Jaune spoke again, and again, he dragged her back to reality. Whatever was on her mind was obviously bothering her, and the young man wanted to help, though he wasn't sure how he could.  
 _'If it makes her feel better than all the more reason to try.'_ He thought to himself before speaking: "If you, uh, don't wanna tell me that's okay. We've all got our secrets, after all." He rubbed his knee idly, trying to come up something else to say. "But, ah… I-if you need help well… I'm here to talk if need you to."

Ruby gave him another smile. This one a little bit brighter. She was grateful he at least tried to make her feel better. And the invitation to talk was something she appreciated even more… even if she couldn't. "Thanks Jaune." She said in a small voice.

The plain bit of gratification caused the young man's face to turn bright red and he began stuttering over his words: "I-it's no p-problem! I-I'm here to help if you need it! Eh heh, heheh." He laughed meekly while scratching the back of his head again. A nervous habit.

The small spectacle of Jaune turning into a bubbling mess of embarrassment made her giggle just a bit. The blond warrior gave her his own small smile and the two fell silent as they resumed watching their friends fight the giant Grimm. While their conversation had been small, both were secretly grateful for the chance to talk. The two teens both thought the same thing in unison, though neither voiced it.

 _It's good to have friends._

 _The outskirts of the Emerald forest…_

Cole didn't say anything as they walked. Merely focusing all his of his available attention on the task of getting to the city alive, and listening for any incoming threats. He persisted in ignoring the fact that he had left a teenager, no, a child in the woods; alone and defenseless.

' _Don't think about it._ ' He reprimanded himself. If he thought about it, his conscious would kick in and he wouldn't be able to think about anything else.

The whole situation reminded him of an encounter in the wastes he and Lilly had experienced. They'd only been out in the wastes for a few weeks, and they came across this kid; a beaten and bloody mess, barely living. He was the only survivor of a raider attack on his caravan. All but the least valuable items had been stolen from the Brahmin, and the boy's father's body had been left to rot where it fell.  
They later found his mother and sister. They had been taken captive and used as "playthings" until their minds warped and broke form the abuse of their captors. Eventually, they joined the ranks of the deranged and psychotic. The only identifiable thing that told them they were related, was a small locket with a picture of the family inside. The mother had kept it, either as a trophy, or a reminder.  
But back to the kid. He'd tried crawling away from the massacre. Two rounds had been logged into his kneecaps, and the left side of his face had been mutilated by the raiders. The sight had made Lilly sick, and he hadn't fared that much better. The two had decided to put him out of his misery quickly, least then he could be with his family.

While it wasn't entirely the same situation he found himself in, that's what it felt like he was doing. Killing another child, who could've lived a long life, had the circumstances been different.

"You're not still brooding over that silly girl, are you?" Igren chimed in from his right. "She was out here of her own accord. It isn't your fault if she is mauled to death by an Ursa or Beowulf."

Igren's disregard for life didn't sit well with him. He'd met people like her before. People who always went about their business, no matter what it was, with little to no regard for life. Those types of people had made him sick, though he could understand the necessity. The wastes weren't forgiving and he and Lilly soon learned that the hard way.

Even he wasn't entirely innocent.

Still: "She was defenseless." The wastelander replied calmly. Turning his head to look at her. "She didn't have a weapon, or one that I could see anyway." Cole realized the mistake too late and looked away. Glancing at Igren, who now wore a wide smirk on her face.

"So you believe she _did_ have a weapon?" The Faunus replied with a mocking tone. "You believe that she did have a way of defending herself and therefor agree that she may, or may not, be fine as of right now." She continued.

The wastelander ground his teeth inside his helmet: "Enough. I don't want to think nor talk about this." His synthetic voice hissed. At that, Igren let out a victorious laugh that dripped with smugness and, what she believed to be "intellectual" superiority.

The two continued onward in silence. Walking through the forest and avoiding the odd Grimm they ran across. Eventually they came to a cliff face that scaled half the size of the Lucky Thirty-Eight. Maybe even more. Cole craned his neck trying his best to gage the exact height. The pain from the previous fight having faded away the previous night.

"Sam can you give me an estimate at how high this thing is?" He whispered to the A.I. Cole still didn't want Igren to know that he had an artificial intelligence built inside his suit. While he knew the stances people held in his own world, he didn't know how well this one would respond to an A.I, or him for that matter, if they knew where he actually came from.

' _Though I guess that's just a little bit redundant by now._ ' He thought back Amelia and Quint.

Sam's best estimate at the exact height of the cliff appeared on his HUD. And just as he'd thought, it was about half the height of the casino he called home.

"I'd suggest some caution when climbing. The cliff doesn't have many places where you could rest, and I would hate to for you die from a _fall_ of all things." her synthetic chimed inside his helmet.

He gave a light chuckle at that. He wouldn't like that either. Approaching the wall, he turned to Igren and spoke: "I guess we better get to it, huh?" he said. His synthetic voice masking his slight annoyance with her from the previous conversation.

Without waiting for a response, he turned and jumped up the wall as high as he could and began climbing. Grappling onto a piece of rock sticking outward and pulling himself up.

"Activating augmented strength and climbing Talons." Samantha said.

Cole felt the weight of his body lighten by a significant amount as his body adjusted to the sudden rush. The small, wire like claws in his gloves extended forward and dug into the rock, allowing him to climb even faster; while the skintight weave of the stealth suit pressed even harder against his body and began sending small pulses of micro-fusion energy to the implants inside his arms and legs, along with small dose of adrenaline for an extra kick.

"See ya at the top!" he taunted Igren as he moved farther up the cliff face.

"You cheating bastard!" he heard her call out.

The wastelander laughed behind his helmet and he proceeded further upwards; not bothering to wait for, or listen to any more of the Faunus' jibes or insults.

Digging his clawed hands into the rock surface and pulling himself upward with bionic strength, he thought about all the other times had done this. From a pre-war book in the casino, Cole had learnt about something called "landscaping". An activity which involved the climbing of high rock faces and other natural areas; and while they were a bother to maintain, least on the odd occasion anyway, Cole was often thankful for the implants he and his sister had received throughout their travels. They made surviving in the wastes easier, and he could remember several times where he would have died, either from a fall, or a firefight; had he not had them.  
 _'Not to mention the mutation…'_ the thought made him appreciate the cybernetics just a bit more. While his scrambled DNA was a helpful addition to many of his abilities, he felt being more machine was better in place of being something akin to a supper mutant; least in his mind anyway.

The wastelander was already a quarter of the way up the cliff when a warning appeared on his HUD. "Warning! Fusion generator at half charge. I'd say we replace it as soon as we reach the top. Unless you want me to power off." Sam advised.

"Thanks for the heads up. Turn off the generator for now. We'll fix it once we reach the top." He replied with a grunt. The familiar weight of his body returned, though it didn't slow his pace down, as he still had the talons.

Then there was Sam, his A.I. Originally a virtual intelligence from the stealth suit MK II, Cole had asked Lilly to import the V.I into the next model; having grown fond of her company on more of his lonesome journeys without his twin.

Well, as it turned out, his twin did more than transport her from the old suit. She fully upgraded Sam into a fully-fledged artificial intelligence. Something that had taken him some time to get used to. Not only was his bodiless traveling companion capable of self-thought, she was able to do so much more with the upgrade.

And yes. It had taken him time to get used to her being fully sentient…

 _A few years ago…_

" _So, how's progress?" Cole asked eagerly, which scored him an annoyed glance from Lilly. His twin didn't stop to answer and instead, continued to work on his armor. This gave Cole the opportunity he didn't have very often: to look around his twin's workshop._

 _Spinning in the chair he sat in, the older twin turned to face the walls, which were covered with schematics and other designs for inventions Lilly had planned._

 _One was a box with some kind of conductors lined up on a ring, each pointed at the center; a crap ton of mathematic and mechanical calculations were written and drawn around it. Clearly, this was something she'd been planning to build whenever she had the chance, as almost all of the page was written on._

 _Another design was something that resembled a ship of some sorts. Something he found uninteresting immediately once he grasped what the poorly drawn schematics were supposed to be. This was their home. Why bother trying to leave it?_

 _He shifted his attention to the last one, which was for his armor. He picked up the medium sized book and flipped through. Several pages showed the top, back, and sides of the suit. Each page was covered with more writing and notes than the last. The specifics of what it all meant was lost on him, as Cole didn't often work with tech the way Lilly did; preferring to work with simpler things like lead-based firearms, or rusted, pre-war pipe work. He was particularly handy with steam._

 _The older sibling left the schematics and felt something hit him the back. The object that had struck him fell to the floor with a useless clang, and he turned to face his sister with a raised eyebrow; rotating his arms to work out the ache she had given him._

 _Lilly didn't seem fazed by his look of faint annoyance and instead, signed for him to come stand on the opposite side from her. Cole did as she asked and walked over to the other side of the table. Once in position, she looked down to her Pip-boy and typed something. The suit on the table between them lit up like the New Vegas strip. Well, not as bright. Or as glamorous. But still plenty pretty in its own way.  
Lilly pressed something again and the suit turned invisible. Vanishing from their sight with the familiar sound of the stealth boy static obscuring the user. Aside from the usual slight haze the use of a stealth boy caused, the armor was effectively gone._

" _Incredible." Cole whispered in amazement. Looking back to Lilly, she held up a finger telling him to wait. Looking back at her Pip-boy, she turned the stealth felid off and held up a hand of the suit. Pressing another button, thin, wire like claws extended from the finger tips. She retracted the claws and signed to him for their purpose: "Climbing." She said with a grin. It was the same kind of grin she'd had when she'd received her first science text book on her eleventh birthday._

 _Cole made an "ah" expression and continued looking over the armor. In appearance, it had elements of both the Chinese dragoon armor and the Big MT's stealth suit line. The metallic armor of the C.D.A had been fused with the fabric of the Big MT's S.S, giving it easy mobility without the wearer being weighed down too much. According to Lilly, it offered more protection than the original two had separately.  
The helmet had been taken from the C.D.A and added as well. The wiring that had run along the outside of the C.D.A model now ran between the fabric and armor, which also kept the micro-fusion generator in the safe and secure. _

_Lilly passed him a card that read: "I call it "Skin weave"". He looked up to see her knocking a knuckle on the armor infused fabric. Pulling out another card and writing something and passing it over: "It clings tightly to your body so the A.I can read your vital signs clearly. (Don't worry, it's thick enough that bullets or energy weapons won't price through right away) And the helmet also comes with a modified HUD and allows breathing under water." The card explained._

 _One word stuck out to the older twin. "AI?" he asked curiously._

 _At that moment a familiar, disembodied voice spoke: "Hello Cole. My name is Samantha, or Sam for short. I'm told I have you to thank for keeping me "alive", and helping me achieve sentience. And for also granting me my name." A synthetic, female voice said to him._

 _Cole took a step back from the table. A bewildered expression covering his face. "You turned Sam, that V.I from the stealth suit MK II into an A.I?" he asked Lilly. Stunned that she would do something like that. All he'd asked for her to do was keep the virtual intelligence in the suit, not toss it away to gather dust or rust somewhere. Instead, she'd went ahead and gave the V.I, or Sam as he had nicknamed her, a brain._

 _His twin simply gave him a nod with that same wide smile across her face, obviously happy with her handiwork. Even though technically speaking, it was the Big Mountains. Lilly had merely taken the ground work they'd set and improved upon it._

" _You sound surprised. Have I done something wrong?" The voi… Sam, asked innocently._

 _Cole swallowed the small lump in his throat and answered: "No, no. You haven't. I'm just… I_ am _surprised." The older sibling conceded. Slightly grateful the A.I didn't have eyes, or any way to see him; otherwise the glare he was giving Lilly right now would have given it, her, or whatever Sam was now, second thoughts about being friendly._

 _Lilly was unfazed by the glare and continued smiling at him. Looking away from him and typing something, the A.I spoke again: "Powering down. I will see you again when I am finished." She said calmly before falling silent._

" _So I'm guessing the micro-fusion generator in this thing does more than power the stealth field?"_

 _Lilly's answer was just a smile…_

 _Present Day…_

That had been his first, actual meeting with the, now, fully sentient Samantha. Sure, he hadn't exactly warmed to the idea of having an AI in his suit; but after she had saved his hide in the first few firefights they'd been in together, Cole was willing to trust the A.I. Something he hadn't regretted ever since.

"Life form detected at the top of the cliff." Sam informed him.

Cole paused in his climb and looked upward, one last pull before he reached the top. He hoped to catch a glimpse of whatever it was that Samantha had detected. The wastelander hesitated in continuing: "Is it hostile?" he asked her. While he'd stupidly done it when he was inexperienced, Cole _still_ wasn't exactly big on walking right into a nest of enemies. And whatever was up there either would want to kill him, or would skitter off as soon as it saw him.

"Right now? No. But it could turn hostile as soon as it sees you. My recommendation? Be prepared." Samantha answered.

' _Well, live and learn.'_ He thought tiredly before pulling himself up and onto the cliff top. Rolling on the ground and breathing hard, he closed his eyes and let himself rest for a bit before he dealt with whatever was up here. Unless it was a Grimm. Than he was screwed.  
The climb with the deactivated generator had been rough, but fun. There were several times he had almost fallen down.

"And just who are you?" A voice asked him. Causing his mood to take a turn. Cole cracked an eye open behind his helmet and saw, standing above him, a woman that looked like one of those pre-war librarians; pointed look and all.

She appeared to be a middle-aged woman with very light-blonde hair, which was tied back into a bun. A single curl hung down on the right side of her face. She wore thin, ovular glasses with bright green eyes behind them. Those same bright green eyes were staring down at him expectedly, waiting for his answer. Cole idly took note of the dangling teal earrings that matched the pendant on her collar; wondering just how much something like those would be worth in the wastes.

' _Probably nothing.'_ He thought as he continued panting from the climb, while studying the librarian. She wore a white, long-sleeved, pleated top that had a wide keyhole neckline and gauntlet cuffs that flared into pleats at the wrist. Her lower body was covered by a black high-waist pencil skirt with bronze buttons and black-brown stockings.

When he didn't answer she, placed a boot on his chest. Black boots with brown heels, which dug into his chest, making it even harder for him to breath. She also had a cape that was purple on the inside and, from what he could see, black on the outside.  
She pointed what looked like a riding crop from the pre-war books he'd read right at his head. The pointed stare intensifying into a full on scowl: "I won't ask again. Who are you?" she repeated. Digging the boot harder into his plated chest.

Cole's wastelander instincts kicked in and he grabbed the woman's other leg and pulled. The action caused the older woman to nearly fall on her back, though she corrected herself by way of a glyph, which she used to catch herself and put some distance between them. Doing a backflip and giving Cole a small peak up her skirt.

' _Not leaving much to the imagination, huh?_ ' he thought lewdly. Which subsequently caused him to chuckle. He corrected himself quickly as she landed. Once vertical the two proceeded to partake in a stare down the woman was attempting to do.  
If he was to be clear, he'd seen much worse from Mole rat pups and, to be even more honest, Lilly when he pissed her off enough. Though he did have to give the librarian credit for trying.

"That was a grave mistake." The woman growled. A purple like aura covered her body and she raised the riding crop at him. The purple energy focused to the tip until a glyph appeared, causing a crystal like orb to form on the end.

"Warning! Harmful energy detected. Let's, uh, not be hit by whatever it is she's doing." Sam warned.

Cole shrugged and simply waited for her to finish whatever it was she was doing; crossing his arms as he did so. The wastelander was genuinely curious to see what this librarian would do, as he had only ever seen Igren use her staff to channel Dust.

Once she was ready, the woman pulled the crop out from the glyph. Launching the crystal at him with intense speed. In the instant when the crystal was a few feet from him, Cole activated the GRX implant. The last remaining juice of his current M.F.G caused time to slow around him. The wastelander effortlessly stepped harmlessly out of the way of the energy and watched it move past him in slow motion.

Time resumed and the crystal resumed its speed. Flying off the edge of the cliff and exploding.

The woman looked to where he now stood. Her eyes wide with surprise, but that soon changed back into a scowl.

Instead of another wind up, the woman simply swung the crop at him. Each lash launched smaller versions of her attack that had previously failed.

The smaller crystals flew towards him and Cole re-activated the implant. Dodging the balls of energy with the grace of one of the Dragoon's from the Anchorage simulation. Thanks to the micro-generator, the implant was supercharged with enough power to make it seem like time had stopped all together. Unlike the last time where time still moved at a slower pace.

"Warning! Micro-fusion generator depleted." Sam informed.

' _Ah piss.'_ The wastelander thought before time resumed. Once it did however, a shot of pain went right through his skull. The feeling he experienced was like someone had drilled a hole in his skull and inserted a hot poker into the wound in an attempt to cauterize it.  
Cole fell to his knees and clutched his head, screaming. Hitting a button on his Pip-boy, he retracted his helmet. That didn't help in the slightest as the world outside his mask was brighter. The sudden surge of light caused the pain to worsen and he clenched his teeth.

"Sam administer something! Anything!" he growled. Disregarding the woman entirely.

"At once!" She chirped right before the familiar hiss of something entering his system signaled the injection.

The relief was almost instantaneous. Lessoning the ache a considerable amount.  
Steadily, Cole breathed in the unfiltered air and slowly stood back to his feet. The woman hadn't approached him, nor taken the opportunity to attack. Instead, she opted to stare at his uncovered head. A slight look of shock and horror was all he could make out of her expression through the blinding light.

' _I know I don't have my hair but that's just rude.'_ He thought through the pain. Seizing the chance with her being distracted, Cole materialized the ranger sequoia and fired. The rounds he'd had previously loaded impacted with her chest, though they didn't puncture her body. Instead, they hit what looked like a barrier. And they hit hard. With each bullet that hit, the woman was forced backward until a stray round hit her square in the head. The force from the bullet causing her to fall to the ground, unconscious.

' _That solves that, at least.'_ He thought as he gripped his head. Muscling through the pain, he reloaded the pistol and approached her. Taking aim at her head in case she was faking. He gave her a quick once-over once near and saw no obvious damage. The bullets hadn't pierced whatever barrier she'd had and her chest rose and fell with shallow breaths.

' _At least that's something.'_ He thought. Relieved that he hadn't taken his first human life in this world. Well, maybe not by _his_ hand.

' _Not going to think about that.'_ He pushed the thoughts of the teen he'd abandoned back down and walked back over to the cliff's edge.

"Finally!" Igren shouted as he looked over the edge. The Faunas reached out a hand for him, which he took and pulled her up. "What was that all about? That blast very well nearly sent me crashing down!" she asked. Hands on her hips and a questioning glare on her face. Her eyes idly wandered over his facial features as she waited for his response.

Before answering, the wastelander turned away from her and re-activated his helmet. Once his head was covered, he spoke: "Some random woman attacked me." he answered in his usual synthetic voice. Pointing over to where the librarian lay unconscious. The two walked over to her together and each kneeled on opposite sides.

Igren gave her a once over. Cole barely catching the small flicker or recognition that sparked in her eye. The wastelander chose to ignore it in favor of helping the woman in front of them… at least for now.

Looking back at her, he had Sam perform a scan on her condition. The woman's vitals were normal. Heart-rate, brain-waves, and all. Nothing stood out too much for him to take notice of, that was, until Igren spoke.

"Her aura's depleted. Whatever you did shredded it like cheese." She commented. "The sheer speed of how you disabled it must've shocked even someone as capable as her into an unconscious state." The Faunus added.

Cole raised an eyebrow at that: "Aura?"

Igren's brow furrowed in surprise at that: "You don't know what Aura is?" she asked him. "Well, I'll have to tell you some other time. Right now we need to get her to Vale." The Faunus placed a hand on the woman's forehead and pushed her one curl of hair out of her face. "We'll get you home safely." She whispered.

Cole pretended he didn't hear that and instead, slid his hands underneath the older woman. Lifting her up, he was surprised to find her to be extremely light, even without the Micro-fusion generator to augment his strength.  
Slinging her over his shoulder, Cole spoke: "Let's go." He inclined his head in the direction they were traveling and the two began walking. With the added situation of their unconscious friend, the two doubled their pace.

"At this rate, we will hopefully reach Vale by nightfall." Igren panted out beside him, struggling to keep up.

Cole didn't say anything. The wastelander opting to focus on their task of getting to the city. Once they were there, he could hopefully drop this stranger off at a hospital and begin searching for his sister.

' _Don't worry Lilly, I'm coming for you.'_

 _A few hours later, at Vale general hospital…_

Lilly silently sighed to herself for what felt like the hundredth time that day. The young wastelander was irritated by the presence of this so called "professor" and the fact she was forced to still wear the all-too-open hospital gown. She still had her Pip-boy, though without the use of her hands, the thing was nothing more than a glorified wrist watch.

' _This is getting tiresome.'_ She thought absently. Leaning her head back on the pillow and staring up at the same pristine ceiling she'd been looking at for the past how many hours she'd been trapped here. Stuck in a whole different world with things she _needed_ to take care of. Such as finding her brother for one, and then finding a way home for another. And here she was, trapped in a shitty hospital bed, with some creepy old man who couldn't take the hint that she was _mute._

This was simply brilliant.

"You're irritated. Exhibiting signs of anxiety and stress. How about this? You answer my questions, and I'll see if I can loosen those shackles?" She heard Ozpin say.

Lilly gave him the most vicious glare she could muster without lifting her head. Ozpin didn't appear fazed by the expression and instead crossed his legs and began patiently waiting for her next response.  
An idea occurred in her mind. One Cole would have probably approved of if he was here.  
Lifting her wrist as much as she could, she flipped the "good professor" the bird. Adding a smug grin upon seeing the deadpanned reaction he gave her.

He sighed after she dropped her hand and stood from the chair, walking over to the window to stare at the pristine city outside. "I see you persist in delaying this. If you continue to put on this show, than I will have no choice but to hand you over to the V.P.D" **(Vale Police department)** he stopped and turned to face her, adding: "That is something I would not like to happen to someone so…" he paused again and thought. "…unique." He finished.

Lilly was unfazed by the threat. In fact, she welcomed it. If they even gave her a small chance to touch her Pip-boy…

The door to her room opened and in stepped the nurse from earlier. "Professor Ozpin, we have something to show you." She informed him.

The professor nodded and the two left the room in silence. The only sound being their foot wear on the floor and the click of the door closing shut.

Once outside, the nurse turned to him and spoke: "Professor, we believe we found the reason why our… um… patient, isn't as cooperative as she could, or in your case, should be." The nurse pulled out her Scroll and typed on it. The two way mirror that looked into the girl's room darkened and on it appeared a full display of their patient. Typing something again, the view changed to a scan of, what he assumed, was the girls brain… Or what was supposed to be her brain.

"What is this?" he asked the woman next to him.

"This is, supposedly, her brain." She began. "After hours of running scans inside the room, we finally broke through the static and… this is what we found." She paused in her explanation to take a breath as the two looked at the triangular like box that posed as the girl's brain.  
The "brain" was held in place by a mixture of wires connecting to the skull through her cerebrospinal fluid **(brain fluid)** and the stem that connected to the spine.

"Is she human?" Ozpin asked the nurse.

The woman took a moment to answer: "We… honestly can't tell. As far as we know, she is organic. She just has a few extra "bits". But that's not what I wanted to show you." The nurse zoomed in on a certain part of the girl's "brain" and pointed to what was supposed to be the cerebrum portion of the box.

"The synapses of the original brain remain, however, the box has altered her brain waves by a considerable degree. From what we can understand, this "box" has made her, already awe-inspiring intellect even more spectacular." The nurse stopped to stare at the brain scan for a moment.

"Ahem." The professor cleared his throat to get her back on track.

"Ah, sorry. As I was about to say: what's curious is that the synapses here are slightly damaged. Mostly the part that governs speech. Everything else aside from this is at a peak condition. Now I don't know if the box was meant to be made like this, with the speech impediment I mean, or it was a design flaw on the creator, or maybe even part of her original brain. But we do know _why_ the girl isn't as much of the conversationalist she could be." The nurse finished. She looked at him for his reaction, which he didn't openly display. Internally however, he was glad to know of this information; now he could begin devising a way of speaking with this mystery girl.

"Is there anything else?" The professor asked, glancing at the nurse out of the corner of his eye.

The woman seemed to hesitate with the next segment of information, though she soon told him: "That device on her wrist, the big bulky thing that looks like a computer? We tired removing it while she was under, with little to no success. No buttons for a release, no switches, nothing. We ran some scans on it and detected a small battery of sorts inside, but aside from that, there wasn't anything of any major value or importance that we could find." She stated.

Ozpin made an ' _mm'_ sound as he stared at the display of the strange device. Perhaps this device was the strange technology that she had used in her fight? If so, he couldn't let it fall in to the wrong hands. If their enemies got their hands on it and found a way to streamline this, they could smuggle anything from guns to explosives into high risk security areas without anyone being none the wiser.

And that wasn't something he could risk.

The headmaster pinched his chin in thought. But was he really willing to end the life of a person once again? Even if it was someone he didn't know, and the act was for the betterment of the kingdom, could he do it in good conscious?

Probably not.

"Miss, I would like you to prepare for her release. I want the V.P.D down here and prepared in case she does something… unexpected." He ordered her before approaching the door to the girl's room.

The nurse hesitated and then gave him a nod, rushing off to fulfill his orders.

Before entering, Ozpin mentally prepared himself for what he was about to attempt. Hopping in good conscious that he wasn't about to waste his time on a futile endeavor.  
Opening the door, he stepped inside and was instantly met with the glare of the mysterious girl. With the door clicking shut behind him, Ozpin walked to the end of her bed and stared deep into her eyes; matching the hard glare she gave him with a calm collected expression.

"I would like to make a compromise." He began smoothly. The girl's face changed from a glare to an expression of curiosity. Raising an eyebrow at that. Good. He seemed to have peeked her interest in the slightest of ways.

"I will release you, and in exchange, you will come with me and attend my school. Kept under the watchful eye of a keeper, who will evaluate you and your behavior towards the denizens of my school and, at a later time, the people of Vale." He added. "If they deem you suitable for release, you will be free to leave. If not, you will be kept at my school until they change their mind." He finished his proposal. Silently hoping she would make the right choice.

The girl seemed to consider his words. Closing her eyes and thinking quietly. _'What's his game?_ ' Lilly silently asked herself. This "professor" had been willing to throw her to the wolves just a few minutes ago if she didn't start talking; now he wants her to attend some kind of school while being kept as a ward? The sudden change of heart just didn't add up in her mind… Still, it would be a chance for her to get out and search for her brother. If he was still alive, that is.  
 _'He'd better damn well be.'_ If Cole had somehow ended up dead and left her all alone in this new world, she wouldn't be able to forgive him. Or herself for that matter.

Returning to the present situation, Lilly made her choice. Giving the "professor" a nod of agreement, or confirmation that she was willing to be taken to a new prison. _'Better to play along until I can find Cole.'_

Ozpin gave her a smile. The expression didn't sit well with her. It made her feel like she'd just given him exactly what he'd wanted, and Lilly hated doing that.  
"Thank you." The old man said in a cold tone. Pulling out a device similar to the one that the nurse had used when she'd came in earlier, he typed something into it and the shackles around her wrists and ankles released with a metallic hiss.

Once free, Lilly sat upright and rubbed the sore spots. While there was no physical damage, the Phoenix Monocyte Breeder having taken care of that problem, the muscles still ached ever so slightly.

' _I'll have to fix that when we get back home.'_ She thought absently. The modifications she'd made to the implant should have removed all traces of damage, including any pain leftover from a wound or otherwise.

She shifted her attention to Ozpin, who stared at her with a blank expression. His face didn't give anything away, but his eyes did. His cold, unfeeling, and intelligent eyes studied her with a curiosity that unsettled her. There was passion within them. Yes. But what she saw in them reminded her of the B.o.S and the Enclave scientists. Once they'd learnt her brother had a mutation, the doctors became willing to sacrifice his life in order to "learn" just what made it tick. She saw just about of the same, lacking amount of empathy in Ozpin's eyes.

"I will have the nurses bring you a change of clothes. Wait here." He turned to leave, but before he could reach the door, Lilly had already materialized and put on a spare suit or recon armor with the familiar flash of light that had piqued Ozpin's interest to begin with.  
While it wasn't the modified version she'd worn when she arrived in this world, the suit offered the same amount of comfort that she appreciated so deeply. Growing up in vault jumpsuits all her life, the familiar feel of tightly pressed leather against her skin offered comfort and safety in her mind. She also materialized a casual wastelander outfit, pulling on the pink hoodie, Brahmin leather pants, and boots over the thin suit.

Ozpin seemed surprised by the sudden appearance of her clothes, though he didn't say anything. Merely stared at her in fascination and curiosity at the rugged attire she now wore.

She gave him a nod which he reciprocated: "Very well. Let us go." He opened the door for her and the two stepped out into the hallway. Like her room, the hospital was a sterile white. On both ends of the hall, there were wheel chairs, gurneys, IV's, and types of medical equipment that one would generally find in a hospital.

' _The Followers would have a field day with this place.'_ The wastelander thought back on how Julie Farkas had asked her and her brother to find medical supplies that one time. If she were here, the doctor would probably be trying to pick up everything she could to bring back to Freeside. _  
'I wonder what Arcade would think of all this?'_ The sudden thought of her best friend made the younger wastelander feel a pang of sadness at the memory of him. The somewhat, pragmatic Followers doctor met his end at the hands of some NCR rangers, who had discovered his true identity. As a way of getting back at Cole for making New Vegas independent, and because they couldn't let go of old grudges, they targeted him.

' _Bastards.'_ Lilly thought bitterly. A tap on her shoulder drew the wastelander back into the present and she turned to follow Ozpin down the hall.

They passed rooms that were almost identical to hers. Not all of them were filled, but a fair portion of the rooms had occupants; some with either a broken limb or recovering from a sickness.  
They passed a room that had a group of people huddled around a bed. A man was propped up and two kids were before him. Each where showing pictures they had drawn in crayons and the man smiled at the two as they began to fight over the approval of their father.

Lilly turned away from the scene and rushed after Ozpin. She didn't want to look at the image of a family anymore. A family like that made the younger twin's chest hurt even more and she pushed those memories down. Not wanting to think about those painful times she and her brother endured.

They past a few nurses, doctors, and visitors as they walked. Most of the passerby's gave her odd looks, most looking at her choice of attire. The two eventually entered a wide, open room with some chairs to the left of them and a large desk on their right. But what really caught Lilly's attention, was right in front of them.  
What she assumed to be twenty odd, armed and armored, men and women, all aimed rifles, pistols, and shotguns at her and Ozpin. Instinctively, the wastelander rushed to her left and hid in the small space of the doorframe. Keeping her back pressed to the wall as much as she could in order to avoid the incoming barrage of bullets.

The barrage never came and the professor looked at her with an odd expression, though he didn't say anything. Stepping forward, he spoke: "Thank you for coming." Ozpin greeted. He walked up to them casually as if they _weren't_ all aiming guns at them, or more specifically, her.  
"I appreciate the help with moving our friend here to the school." He continued. Stopping to turn around to face her: "You can come out now. These fine people are only here as a precaution."

Lilly peaked her head out just a bit to see the officers in a more relaxed position. They still held their weapons, though thankfully, they weren't aimed her anymore.  
Cautiously, the wastelander stepped out and approached the officers. Once close to Ozpin, she kept herself slightly behind the professor; using him as a kind of human shield should the officers deiced to change their minds and open fire.

Ozpin didn't seem to notice and nodded to the escort for transportation to begin. The officers surrounded her and the professor and together they walked out the hospital doors.  
For the first time since she'd arrived, Lilly was finally able to get a decent view of the city. The buildings around her, although not pristine, stood tall and proud. With barely any signs of disrepair visible. The concrete she walked on was hard and sturdy; not crumbling under her feet wherever she stepped. She looked up and saw for the first time in her life: a clear, blue sky. Bathed in oranges and purples from the setting sun. The atmosphere above them didn't look as polluted as their world. She couldn't see a single sign of radiation present in this world.

Out of the corner of her eye, Lilly saw the moon. Or what was left of it. The once proud celestial body that had orbited the planet was in pieces. Shattered by some kind of event that must've happened long ago. The sight of the moon being in such state made her feel a little sad, though she wouldn't shed any tears for it. The young wastelander had often looked up at the celestial body on the long nights she and Cole had spent out on the trail. Often at times wondering what was out there.

She breathed in and the taste of the air filled her mouth and lungs. Unfiltered, pure air. Something she had never experienced before.  
 _'I wonder what Cole would say about all of this.'_ She smirked at the reaction her brother might've had to this different environment. _'Probably something along the lines of: "Well, at least it isn't trying to kill us."_

The wastelander looked away from the sky and returned her attention back to the present situation. Continuing with the progression, Lilly and the group walked over to an armored truck of some kind. A turret was mounted on top and six wheels were on the bottom. One of the officers opened the door and gestured for Lilly and Ozpin gestured to get in. Eyeing the guards suspiciously, Lilly reluctantly climbed into the tank first and sat in one of the corner seats. Ozpin and four of the other officers climbed in after her. Once seated, one of the guards slammed his fist on the closed door and the truck began moving.

"Miss Goodwitch should be back by now and we can end the day with the formation of the teams." Ozpin said aloud. None of them responded, the guards were uninterested and Lilly kept to her own thoughts as they rode to the Bullhead.

The young wastelander closed her eyes and thought. Her mind raced with ideas of what she would do once she was finally let off the leash and could get away from this Ozpin guy. The first thing she would do would be finding her brother. Then she could begin working on a way to get them home.

' _Though do we really want to go back to that hellscape?'_ a voice inside her asked. _'Think about it: here you probably have fresh food, clean water, breathable air, and buildings that aren't falling down!'_

Lilly shook her head at that: _'We still have responsibilities back home.'_ She countered. The brains couldn't be trusted to run the Think Tank alone and Cole had a budding empire to tend to. But the voice was right, to a degree. Here she didn't have to fight for her life and could probably live normally until she grew old.

' _But what about Dean?'_ Another voice added. The mention of her older brother caused her to grimace in her mind. _'What about all the people who have to live through that hellscape every day, while you sit here, pretty in this fresh, new, and clean new world?'_

Lilly fell silent for a moment. _'We'll discuss this when we find Cole._ ' She finished.

' _We'll see…'_ The voices said in unison.

' _We will see…'_

 _Hours earlier, inside the emerald forest…_

After what felt like hours of running, jumping, shooting, climbing, and smashing: the group _finally_ managed to bring down the Nevermore. With some nifty ingenuity by her and Blake, the two were able to launch some of their teammates up at the giant bird by using some pillars from the nearby ruins, they making a makeshift slingshot.

First had been Ren, who'd gone for the eyes. Next was Pyrrha, who had left a sizeable wound on its back. And lastly, were Nora and Yang. The two brawlers had been launched at the same time and impacted with its left side. Practically blowing the, now decayed, Grimm's to pieces.

"We… did it…" Weiss panted out.

Blake came up behind her and handed a canteen from her pouch, which Weiss drank from greedily. Guzzling down almost half of the canister in one go.

"You going to be okay?" The secret Faunus asked the heiress in a small voice.

Weiss handed the bottle back to her and nodded: "It's just… using my semblance so much at once… takes a lot out of me." she breathed out.

Blake nodded and walked from the pillars to the cliffs edge. Their companions they had launched were, thankfully, saved by some of the ruins lower down the canyon.

Their teammates waved up at her and she reciprocated the gesture. Waving to them, Blake turned back to see the girl in the red cape and the blonde boy with the crude weaponry approaching them with Weiss following behind.

"Where were you two?" she asked stiffly. Keeping her expression neutral so as not to illicit hostility.

The girl in red answered first: "Weiss asked me to keep Jaune safe from the Deathstalker." She answered plainly. Walking to the cliffs edge, she looked for their companions, shouting out: "Yaaaaaaaaannnng!" in her high pitched voice.

A moment after the call, the sound of an explosion was heard and a second later her partner grappled onto the cliffs edge and pulled herself up; smothering the girl in red with a massive bear hug once she was standing.

"Ruby!-I'm so glad you're safe!-Where were you?" The blonde asked in quick succession. Ruby couldn't respond, still being suffocated by her sister's massive breasts. "Oh, sorry." She added before releasing the younger girl, who inhaled gulps of air as if they'd be her last.

"I was… protecting Jaune while you and the others dealt with the Grimm." She answered through another gulp of air.

That seemed to placate the brawler only a bit, though the elder sibling didn't say any more. Instead, she gave Ruby a mischievous smile that caused the younger sisters cheeks to turn a bright pink. Catching onto the hidden implications of Yang's expression.

"I-it wasn't like that!" Ruby stuttered out. Attempting to smack the grin off of Yang's face.

The two began the usual grapple that siblings do until a voice but through the air: "Guys!" Weiss called out through the noise of the two siblings.  
"Can we please return our attention to our current task?" That got the two to finally stop their little fight. The sisters separated and scratched the back of their heads in embarrassment, looking away from the group and each other.

"Sorry." They muttered at the same time.

Blake pulled up the last of their friends and rolled her eyes at the two. Turning her attention to looking around at the area they were in. They were all still stood in the ruins of an old civilization, one that had existed long before the formation of the kingdoms. The buildings had seen better days. Over the centuries they had crumbled and decayed into nothing more than skeletons of an old world. The hidden Faunus spotted an old billboard, advertising for some kind of vehicle, though the lettering had worn off ages ago.

' _Guess even in the old world, people still had cooperation's that compelled people to buy useless junk.'_ She thought absently. Returning her attention to their task, Blake noticed a small building out of the way of their battle. Silently, she slipped away from the group and strolled over to the ruin.  
The building had a collapsed roof, letting the sunlight in. The support pillars that held the structure up were stripped bare of any concrete that might have once been there.  
Inside were several, smaller pillars with an item on top. Some appeared to be rusted chess pieces, but she left those alone. Instead, the Faunus walked over to one of the other pillars with a different kind of item on it.

Before her, on the glass surface of the column, sat what looked like an, old, rusted bottle cap. Blake furrowed her brow in thought, trying to discern the reasoning for such an item being one of the relics. Looking over to the other pillars, several more bottle caps had been placed. About seven or eight.

Shrugging, the hidden Faunus picked up the rusted piece of metal and idly turned it over in her hands, the hard metal scratching at her finger tips as she did so. On the underside was something blue, the symbol slightly faded by time. Blake rubbed at it a bit and saw what appeared to be a blue star on the underside of the cap once she'd cleared the rust.

The place where the cap had once sat suddenly lit up with a holographic picture of her appearing on the glass surface. The image vanishing just as soon as it had appeared.

' _Strange.'_ She thought curiously, though any number of cats knew that curiosity wasn't always such a good thing.

"What'cha got their?" She heard Ruby ask beside her. The sudden appearance of the young girl beside her surprised Blake and the hidden Faunus jumped away from the tiny reaper with her cat life reflexes.  
It took a moment for her to calm down before she responded. Thankfully the young girl hadn't seemed to notice anything strange about her reaction. Good.

Once she was calm enough, Blake answered: "It's a… bottle cap. These are some of the items Ozpin told us to collect." The hidden Faunus gestured around and noticed some of the items were missing. "I guess some of the other initiates already made it here." She pointed out the empty column tops to Ruby, who ignored her and walked over to one column and picked up another bottle cap.

The young girl squinted at the rusted top but couldn't make sense of what it said. She gave up in frustration and looked around with Blake. Like last time, after a moment the tiny reaper had picked up the item, a holographic picture of Ruby's face appeared and disappeared, though the teen didn't seem to notice.

"Hey sis! Where'd you run off to?" They heard Yang shout out.

"I'm in here!" Ruby answered back and the blonde brawler stepped into the old, roofless building a second later.

"Hey, hey! Look at this!" Yang called to the others as they funneled in to the room. Each picked up one of the various items. The blonde brawler picking up another bottle cap. Jaune, Ren, Pyrrha, and Nora all went for the chess pieces.

"Wonder what these and the chess pieces are supposed to represent?" Yang wondered aloud as she studied the cap like Blake and Ruby had and with theirs. And just like them, she gave up in frustration with being unable to read the label.

All that was left was one more bottle cap… and Weiss.

Everyone in the room looked at her expectantly. "I am _not_ touching that rusted piece of junk!" The heiress protested when she finally noticed the stares. "Who knows where it's been? What kind of diseases it's carrying?" She added before being shoved forward by Yang and Nora.

"Just get it over with." The blonde said, while Nora nodded her head in agreement.

Weiss made an " _ugh"_ sound of disgust and finally picked up the rusted piece of tin between her fore-finger and thumb; a grimace on her face the whole time until the holograph appeared. Once gone, she threw the cap into the grass and whipped her hand off on her combat skirt.

Behind them, the entrance to the room closed and the sky above them darkened. The rest of the columns lit up one by one, all pointing a beam of light to the center of the room. An image of professor Goodwitch formed above them and began speaking: "Excellent work. Now that you have recovered your respective pieces, the last team that is here will be picked up and brought back to Beacon for team assignment." After that, the image dispersed and the room returned to its natural lighting.

No one said anything. For the briefest of moments, everyone didn't have anything to say, except for a collective thought that ran through their minds.

"Weeeee did iiiiiiiiitttttt~!" Nora shouted out what everyone was thinking. Inadvertently snapping the rest of the group out of their collective stupor.

Yang threw her arm around her sister: "See Ruby? I told you everything would be fine!"

The younger sister slipped out of her older siblings iron grip and bolted toward the door. The rest teens followed her out; walking out of the dimly lit building and into the afternoon sunlight.

Although exhausted from the journey, the whole group felt a collective sense of relief pass through them as they saw the Bullhead approach. They had done it. They had passed the initiation…

 _Location unknown…_

In a dimly lit room, a video feed began to transmit.

"I've got the footage you wanted. You wouldn't _believe_ how much of a pain in the ass it was to get this. I mean, it was fairly easy for someone like me, buuuuuut-."

"Just. Give me. The data." A mysterious figure hissed out between clenched teeth. The man on the other side flinched just a bit before pressing a button. A moment later, the footage the figure had been awaiting finally appeared on the screen.

The video was of an armored figure battling two huntresses in training. The figure watched intently as the armored stranger destroyed one of the huntress's weapons. They ran a scaly clawed hand over the image of the armor and the weapon it wielded. Their glowing eyes stared at the items with sinister desire.

"Anything else you need, boss?" The man asked, though his tone was slightly apprehensive.

The figure lowered their hand from the screen and returned their attention back to the nuisance: "Yes. Find out whoever this stranger is and keep an eye on them." The figure said calmly. "We'll want to keep an eye on them."

"Will do." The man agreed before cutting the video feed.

The figure continued to stare at the armor. A thought going through their mind.

 _A remnant on Remnant. How interesting…_

 **A.N: So yeah. Life took a shit on me the past few months. Any who, here's a really long chapter with some more awkward pacing. I hope you like it and, since this is the sixth chapter, I figured I'd answer some of reviews.**

 **Guest #1: Yeah, well. That's something I accepted when I decided when I was gonna write this thing. People don't like, I guess don't read it.**

 **Stuka: I'm glad for the positive reinforcement. Like I said, if I do finish this thing and do a rewrite, I will definitely try and fix that awful fight scene.**

 **Shaneman17: I think I addressed your review in a previous chapter. But if not, than you will never know why I did it like that. (Sorry mate)**

 **Guest#2: I have seen both series and read the uninteresting manga. (Just felt meh in my crappy opinion) As for the scythe upgrade, I dunno. I have this vague idea of what I want to do, I'm just having trouble figuring out how I can do it.**

 **RaptorusMaximus: Thanks for the support. Like I said, I (sort of) know what I want to do. I just might have trouble doing it.**

 **Rebel Don: Again, thanks for the support. The idea was actually something I sat on for a while. Just didn't know how I wanted to get them from FO:NV to RWBY.**

 **A fan#1: Cole's armor is actually more advanced than Lilly's power armour. It might be smaller, and less durable, but I still like the idea of the Stealth Suit MKIII being better than the original models and slightly stronger than standard power armor. (At least hardware wise)  
As for why I gave Lilly the power armour in the first place: eh? Why not? I was actually kind of bored of seeing females always being in the light armour position.**

 **A fan#2: No.**

 **RaptorusMaximus: Hello again. As for why I made Butch kind of a cunt, it was because I needed to somehow add trauma to Lilly's life before leaving the vault. Also, I'm pretty sure I disappointed you with how I handled the way Ozpin found out she was mute. (Sorry)**

 **Fellowman: Haha…! Not really.**

 **Also, now that that's out of the way, I've got some news that may interest this little band of followers: I have decided to quit fanfiction!**

 **JK. In all honesty I do have news: I plan on doing a sort of "Filler" story. It'll mostly be a "Fill in the blanks" sort of thing that hopes to-**

 **Look it's just a side project that will explain what happens in the gaps of everything and tell you how certain characters got to where they are. I realized that some people might get lost, what with my shitty way of doing things and all that jumping around. So it's best if I explain it away from the main plot.**

 **You'll read those… than you'll come back and be like: "That made no goddamn sense to begin with!" And I'll be like: "You're right! I should probably fix that!"**

 **And then I never will.**

 **Also, you know when Cole is climbing the cliffside? (Of course you do, you just read it) Well to avoid some misunderstanding, the initiates killed the Nevermore** _ **before**_ **Cole encountered Miss Goodwitch. Just in case some misunderstood.**

 **So! In conclusion! I hope you enjoyed this really long, really poorly done chapter (least in my opinion) and I will see you when I see you.**

 **Ciao.**


	7. Unexpected meetings

**A.N: Hey everybody. Long time no see. I know this chapter has taken forever to get out, but a lot of stuff, once again, happened in my life. I would also like to tell everyone that there is a poll on my user. The two options are: #1: me rewriting the older chapters of this story so that things later in the story make more sense. Or #2: continuing the story and then coming back and then fixing everything. The poll's been up for a while and I'd love to see what everybody thinks.**

 **As a taste for the rewrite option, I went back and fixed up that fight in chapter two. (along with a few other things so that's partially more manageable/bearable to read)**

 **I would also like to announce that we've reached well over 4,128 views as of right now! (least that's what the traffic graph tells me)  
Whether you've followed, favorited, and reviewed this piece of work or not, I'm grateful for so many people taking the time out of their lives to read some of my work. It's really humbling and I hope many more of you look forward to more of this story and more of my other work. **

**Also, this chapter is a two parter! The next part will sum up Act I and we will officially be moving on to Act II of this story. (hope everyone's excited)**

 **Now, let us begin.**

Ruby was in shock.

Well, more-so a state of disbelief than anything else.

Immediately after they had returned, she and the other first years had been summoned to the lecture hall for the formation of their teams. Ruby had been dreading the ceremony for a while now, and all throughout the event, the tiny reaper had been a total nervous wreck; keeping her jaw firmly clamped shut and digging her nails so hard into her palms that they drew blood, while she awaited placement into her new team.

By all accounts, she, Weiss, Jaune, and Pyrrha should've been formed into a team. But that hadn't been the case. Instead of putting her into a cruddy team, away from her sister, Ozpin had done the opposite of her expectations; assigning her to a team with her sister; along with Weiss and Blake.

But the biggest surprise the tiny reaper hadn't expected was him naming her team _leader_ of all things _._

The shock she, and everyone else in the room, had felt at that instant was insignificant compared to the rage Weiss had expressed once Ozpin had finished speaking. The heiress had _stormed_ out of the hall in a fit of anger; swearing she wouldn't stand for this as she parted the crowd like a sea as she left the hall.

After the sudden outburst, Ozpin had assured her and the other two members of team _RWBY_ that "The Schnee would come around" and that Ruby was, at least in his opinion, fit to lead the team they'd all been assigned to.

But Ruby still had her doubts.

The remaining first years that she'd encountered from initiation congratulated her and Jaune for their promotions to the leaders of teams _RWBY_ and _JNRP_. The congratulations were nice, and she thanked everyone profusely, but that didn't help with the heavy knot that wound itself tighter and tighter inside the younger girl's stomach. Ruby couldn't help but think back to everything that had happened only a few short hours ago.  
For most of the initiation, all Ruby had done was hide away from the fights, while Weiss and the others did most of the heavy lifting. Without the heiress, Ruby and the rest of her friends, at least she thought they were her friends, would have died several times over if not for Weiss.

"She will come around." Ozpin reassured her once again. Placing a hand on her shoulder and gently directing her away from the group and toward one of the exits of the hall. "Please, follow me. There is someone I would like for you to meet." The headmaster added in his usual calm and cool voice as he began walking toward the exit.

The tiny reaper nodded behind him and followed the headmaster eagerly. Glad to be leaving the hall, and the stares from of the crowd of students, behind her.  
They passed through a small portion of the crowd and out of the great hall. The young girl walking in step with the older man into one of the many passages that sprawled throughout the school.

Ruby took the opportunity to look around and, much to her surprise, found the décor of the school to be rather boring, if she was to be honest. The walls were painted a light, creamy brown, with two sets of lines that were painted red, both of which, ran along the bottom and top of the walls. They occasionally passed by a window as they walked, though nothing really caught the young huntress's attention when she looked outside. Most of the sights were either of the school grounds, the city, or of the mountains and forests.

The hallway eventually opened up to another wide room with a high ceiling. The sheer size of the atrium made Ruby feel even smaller than she already felt whenever she was around some of the older students. Around them, some of the third or fourth year huntsmen and huntresses milled around the headmaster as he passed them by. Most were running to either catch up with someone, or rushing to one of the many elevators that were housed within the room.  
They came to a small set of stairs and walked up, coming to another elevator set all by its lonesome. Ruby took notice of the carpet under foot, the texture feeling different compared to the one she walked on in the hallways. Beneath her was a lavish dark green fabric with the symbol of Beacon in its center, stopping just before the elevator entrance.

The two entered the lift and Ozpin pressed one of three buttons on the panel. The lift moved with a start and they began their ascent in silence.

Ruby awkwardly cleared her throat: "So… who is it that you wanted me to meet?" she asked awkwardly. Cringing slightly at her lack of subtlety.

The headmaster, who had assumed his usual relaxed stance, didn't say anything. Simply waiting for the lift to stop before answering. Once they'd reached their destination, the older huntsman finally spoke: "Your ward." He muttered coldly.

The doors opened with a _ding_ and the two stepped out into an elaborate office that was befit of the headmaster of Beacon. Below them was the intricate clockwork mechanism consisting of many interlocking cogs and gears, all of which were right below Ozpin's office, and none of which made a sound. In front of them, a wide desk sat at the back, near a window that let most of the light in and, if Ruby were to hazard a guess, give a spectacular view of, not only Beacon, but Vale as well.

Out of the corner of her eye, Ruby spotted a lone figure standing in the corner of the room and staring out said window. Their back was turned to them and they seemed to be staring intently at something off in the distance. Ruby stopped in the center of the office while Ozpin calmly walked behind his desk, setting his iconic coffee mug down, and approaching the figure; placing a hand on their shoulder and gesturing back to Ruby.

The figure gave a nod and walked to the front of the desk with a gait that Ruby recognized from her time in Signal. All students were taught certain things that would benefit them. Things like, how to walk without making a sound, or how to keep your body prepared for anything that could happen. This person clearly expressed the same style of movement she, and many other students from signal, had learned.

Once Ruby finally got a good look at her, the tiny reaper couldn't help but stare, wide-eyed, once she had made out who it was.

Before her stood the stranger from the mech suit. The girl from their fight. The girl that had destroyed _Crescent Rose._

The young huntress felt a flood of emotions at that instant: Anger, happiness, grief, and joy. They all welled up inside her at the sight of the silver haired stranger. Ruby clenched her jaw, baling her hands into fists again, as she tried to reign in her feelings. She _thought_ she'd be able to handle the inevitable meeting with the stranger. She _thought_ that it would be easier. She had thought…

… Well, she didn't know what to think, especially at this moment. On one hand, she and her sister had attacked because they thought she was just a malfunctioning mech. Thinking that they'd be doing a civil service of disposing of dangerous technology. But, on the other hand, Ruby had come to realize that she, and her sister, had _almost killed a person._ That alone was enough to make the tiny reaper question if she really hated this girl, even after the destruction of her beloved scythe.

 _Did we do the right thing?_ Had been the biggest question she and Yang had been asking themselves for quite a while now.

"Miss Rose?" Ozpin's voice drew her back to reality, and she shook her head to clear the over emotional thoughts that clouded her mind. Breathing in shallow breathes, she took in the mysterious girl's appearance. It was surreal to see her awake, alive, and aware of everything around her.

Just like the last time she'd seen her, the girl had sliver gray hair, though it was lazily done up into a ponytail. Her own, silver gray eyes, stared at her with an intellectual intensity that made the younger girl uncomfortable; causing Ruby to shift her weight from one leg to another as the two studied each other. As for her clothes, the mystery girl wore some strange attire, and that was putting it mildly. She wore a faded, pink sweater that had the sleeves cut off at the shoulders to accommodate some kind of armor that was strapped to a green kind of leather suit; the metal looked worn and faded. The same situation could be said about her pants: nearly falling apart from probable wear and tear, and cut off just before the knees to expose more armor.  
 _Why so much armor?_ Ruby questioned silently. Whoever this girl was, she required vast amounts of protection. From what, she couldn't guess.

"Yes? I'm… I'm sorry. What… what do you need?" Ruby stammered out a response. Shaking her head again and doing her best to ignore the hard stare she was receiving from the girl in front of her.

"As I said, you will be meeting your ward today." Ozpin stopped to gesture to the silver haired girl before continuing: "I would like you to keep an eye on her and make sure she is comfortable during her stay here in Beacon." The headmaster stopped once again as he typed something onto the holographic console on his desk.  
"As such, I have permitted you and your team to stay in a larger dorm, mostly to accommodate for the extra member who will be joining your group, and attending Beacon, as a huntress in training under your supervision."

Ruby's eyes widened at this: "She's… joining my team?" The young girl asked timidly. The feelings of unease washed over her again. Unsure of what to make of the sudden development. Not only had she just been named team leader a few short moments ago, now she just had an extra member added onto her team. Yes, she had agreed to keep an eye on this girl, but that didn't mean she wanted her on her team.  
 _What if she hurts someone? What if she ends up destroying someone else's weapon?_ Ruby worriedly wondered. _And what if she ends up getting hurt again?_ These and more concerns welled up within the tiny reaper as she tried her best to come to terms with the sudden development.

The headmaster didn't seem fazed by the large amount of hesitance the young girl before him expressed: "It will be easier for you to keep watch on her if she is with you and the other members of your team." The headmaster said plainly. "Also, I would advise you to keep in mind that she is unable to-." Ozpin was suddenly cut off by the sound of a small _ping_ from his scroll. The headmaster pulled out the device and looked to see what it could be. The older man didn't let anything show, either from his expression to his posture, about what the message could've been. The young girl could see his eyes dart over the message quickly, prior to closing the device and looking back up at them: "I'm afraid I'm going to have to cut this short." He paused to clear his throat: "As you must know, this young lady here is mute, meaning she is unable to speak. Now, could you please do us the courtesy of escorting her to your new dormitory? I will call upon you two again once this matter has been settled." He finished quickly, sitting in his desk chair and shifting all focus onto the holo-terminal before him.

Ruby did her best to absorb everything the headmaster had just said. Swallowing the lump in her throat, the tiny reaper nodded and gestured for the girl to follow her, all without saying a word.

The two stepped into the elevator and began the descent in silence; the air between them so heavy that it almost felt suffocating for the young huntress in training.

 _What should I do?_ Ruby silently asked herself. In all her fifteen years of life, she had never _once_ encountered a person who couldn't speak. From what she _did_ know, they often spoke in something called "sign langue". A skill Ruby wished she had right now.

The tiny reapers eyes suddenly widened and she gasped, bringing her hands to cover her mouth: _Oh my god…_ she silently cursed. _I… I guess that explains one thing._ Realization dawned inside the younger girl's mind and her body shook from the revelation. Ozpin had told her that the girl beside her was mute, which means, if she _had_ been able to speak, then they never would've ended up fighting in the first place. She would never have lost _Crescent Rose_ and she would never have found herself in this situation.  
Now that she had the chance to think about it, Ruby and her sister were the ones almost entirely in the wrong here. They'd jumped in to a fight without any information or motivation, other than "It could be dangerous and cause problems for the city". In the end, the girl beside her had only been defending herself.

 _Oh… my god._ Ruby silently cursed again. Tears threatened to spill from her eyes and she shut the lids closed to prevent herself from becoming a mess. Taking small gasps of air to make it seem to the older girl that she was alright; even though she wasn't.

Once she got herself under control, Ruby let out a shaky breath and spoke: "Look… I'm… I'm Sorry… about what happened." She mumbled. Releasing another shaky breath and swallowing the lump in her throat. She wiped the tears that still threatened to fall with her sleeve; all while trying to keep herself from breaking down any further.  
Deep down, some part of her still hadn't entirely forgiven the stranger for what she did to _Crescent Rose,_ but Ruby _did_ know she had done far worse to the stranger than she thought possible. The young girl glanced at her ward, who hadn't even bothered to look at her. Instead, the stranger merely continued to look out at the scenery as they descended. At this, Ruby clamped her jaw shut again and fell into a respectful silence. Trying her best to maintain control over her emotions and keep herself calm enough until the elevator ride ended.

 _At least she's honest._ Lilly thought absently. Giving an invisible shrug inside her mind as she watched the fresh world on the other side of the glass grow closer and closer as they neared the ground.  
In retrospect: who, or what, Lilly had expected to be her keep was not a child of all things. She'd thought this Ozpin would've placed some gruff, disinterested, brute of a person to look after her. Or maybe a machine? She honestly hadn't considered that the old man would assign a _child_ of all things to be her keeper; let alone the same girl that she had previously fought.

 _This just keeps getting better and better, doesn't it?_ The wastelander had thought snidely; prior to the girl's sudden apology. Inside the silent genius' mind, Lilly held no care for the girl beside her, or her bleeding heart for that matter; the wastelander had more pressing concerns to worry about besides some infants conscious.

The elevator made a _ding,_ signaling the two's arrival to the world below the tower. Both warden and ward disembarked from the lift, and stood on top of the decorated carpet. Ruby pulling out her scroll with the intent of messaging the rest of her team, while Lilly waited impatiently for her to finish whatever it was she had planned with the device.

While Ruby continued to type on the holo-broad, Lilly took the opportunity she didn't have previously and looked about the room they were stood in, taking in the architecture and the small details around them. Already, the wastelander had discovered several key points that could hide video cameras.  
 _How bland, yet quaint._ The silver haired girl thought wearily. The open room consisted mostly of greens and greys, some red tapestry's here and there, and a few portraits of people Lilly assumed were passed headmasters. A skylight far above allowed sunlight to illuminate the dull room, giving it a dull glow.

Lilly rolled her eyes, already growing bored with being stood in one place for too long. The wastelander longed for the chance to get out and explore the new world she found herself in.

And to find Cole. Her brother's whereabouts and safety were at the forefront of her mind constantly, and the itch to simply go out and look for him grew stronger and stronger the more time that passed with her being forced to stay in one place.

"The rest of my team has found the dormitory where we'll be staying." Her warden finally spoke, putting the device away and turning to face her ward.

Lilly didn't answer, opting to glare at a group of students gathered amongst themselves. Some of them had attempted to comment on her outfit in hushed whispers, though she still heard them thanks to her implants.

In reprisal, Lilly shot them a wicked glare. One that obviously spooked them, as they turned away from her and moved down one of the halls. Muttering "crazy bitch" under their breath as they went.

The Ruby stepped in quickly and directed the girl to follow her. The tiny reaper could feel the eyes of other students upon her as they went. The remaining groups in the atrium huddled closer together and muttered amongst themselves. The young huntress in training did her best to ignore their whispers and carried on with the task at hand. Hoping that this wouldn't be what her life at Beacon would be like forever.  
"Come on. The rest of team _RWBY_ is waiting for us before they go in." she said in a small, yet annoyed voice. Tugging on the girls arm and, with a bit more tugging, the two set off for the dorm.

They passed by multiple groups of students along the way, each group adding their own thoughts to the mutterings and stares that Ruby felt crawl along her skin. She wasn't sure if they were talking about her, the girl in her company, or how her initiation went.

' _Please be anything but that. Please.'_ The tiny reaper silently pleaded. Ruby couldn't bear the thought of going through four years of training while everyone talked about how she'd _barely_ joined the school behind her back.

The younger girl suddenly felt a hand on her shoulder which swiftly forced her to face the girl behind her. The girl in question stared at her, holding out a card with some poorly done hand writing on it. Ruby took the card and squinted at the text, trying to make out whatever it was that the girl had written; to no avail, sadly.

"I can't read it." She answered simply. Shaking her head and handing the card back. And besides, she wouldn't want to read it anyway. Whatever the girl had to say could wait until they were at the dorm and she was with her sister.

Lilly rolled her eyes and pocketed the card. Unsurprised that the girl couldn't read her writing. Letting out another silent sigh, she followed the-girl-in-red down the halls; passing through more of uninteresting architecture.

The wastelander had let out what felt like the hundredth sigh as of this moment. Nearly just falling into her own little world when the girl before her stopped suddenly, causing Lilly to collide with her back.

"Hey Ruby!" a voice called out to the girl, Ruby. Lilly's mind immediately snapped back to reality and she scanned everything she saw before her with a critical eye. The-girl-in-yellow, from their fight, waved at them, while two other girls, both wearing the opposite of the others color, stood at her side; one with her arms crossed and annoyed expression on her face, and the other feigning disinterest in spectacle going on.

Ruby and the older girl embraced each other and began to talk, leaving Lilly to block out most of what was about to be said.

"Ozpin messaged us about the dorm and where to go. We figured we'd wait for you… since… you're…" The girl-in-yellow's speech slowed to a crawl as she seemed to finally take notice of Lilly's presence.

The wastelander caught the blonde staring at her out of her peripheral and recalled the thrashing the girl had given her. In return, Lilly gave her a hard stare; remembering how the brawler had destroyed her power armor during their fight.

The girl lightly flinched from the wastelander's expression. Her own face darkening with a haunted expression taking hold as she moved Ruby behind her before speaking: "You…" she said in a shallow tone. Low enough for only her and the few others around them to hear.

The last time Yang had seen the girl in front her, she was coughing up blood and had been knocked into a coma. The fear the blonde had felt when she'd realized that there had been a living, breathing, person inside the suit came rushing back, and she struggled to find her voice.

Taking a step closer, she spoke again: "…When Ozpin said we'd… be keeping an eye on you… I figured he would've changed his mind after our initiation." She started. "I… guess it was too much to hope for."

The girl stepped closer, stopping just before she entered Lilly's personal space. The blonde reached out and placed a gloved hand on her shoulder, whispering: "I'm really sorry for what-."

Lilly desperately wanted to snap the girls arm in that instant. To grab her wrist and strike where the joint was weak. Instead she resisted her violent impulses and shrugged off the girl's hand before she could finish what she had to say. Lilly wasn't interested in another apology. Especially from someone she didn't know or care for.

Ruby suddenly came up behind the blonde, whispering: "She can't speak, Yang. She's a mute." The tiny girl chimed in. The new information provided by her sister made Yang's haunted expression intensify; lowering her head and stepping away from the wastelander without saying another word.

 _Well, that certainly was interesting._ Lilly thought absently. _At least to a degree._ She added. Looking on, and letting her usual bored expression take its place as the two other girls finally stepped forward. The one in white was the first to speak up: "Ruby. Yang: Who is this?" she asked in a disdainful voice.

The moment the girl-in-white spoke up was the moment Lilly decided she despised her. Her voice dripped with "upper class superiority", just like the denizens from Tenpenny tower and the high-rollers from the NCR. That arrogance was something she, and her brother, equally detested with a passion, as they often believed in the sentimentality: "The strong conquer the weak", and so on.

 _Prissy Bitch._ Lilly silently nicknamed her. Smiling to herself. The nickname seemed _very_ fitting for someone of _her_ 'caliber' _._

"This is, um…" Ruby awkwardly trailed off as she scratched the back of her neck in and attempt to recall a name the wanderer hadn't given. "…What _is_ your name?" she embarrassedly asked.

Lilly wasn't impressed with the way Ruby covered her slip up. The way the girl went about acquiring information was pitiful, even by her standards. If this were a conversation out in the wastes, Ruby would've either been killed several times over already, or, more simply told to fuck off and die. A sentiment from the Great Khans she often enjoyed.

 _Wish it were that simple right now._ She thought silently. Of, course she couldn't _voice_ her thoughts about the way the younger girl went about acquiring information. So instead, to placate the heard, Lilly pulled out yet another card, scribbled something on it, and handed it to the girl in Yellow, who carefully took as if it were a fragile piece of glass.

"Tessa." The blonde read out with some difficulty. Obviously not her real name, but that wasn't something she could just handing out all willy-nilly. And this time, Lilly had _purposefully_ made it difficult for them to read. These were to be her wardens, her keepers that would hold her from searching for her missing twin. She had no reason to respect them, even _if_ most of them were, at least in her eyes, still children.

"Tessa." The one in white repeated. Prissy Bitch sounded unconvinced and even more annoyed then she did earlier; but if she bought it for now, then things were at least under the wasters control… at least for the moment.

"Why is it that she looks like she was just picked up from the slums?" prissy bitch asked in a condescending tone. Giving a sniff in her general direction. "Ugh. And why does she smile like it too?"

 _Fucking cunt._ Lilly thought angrily, grinding her teeth as she had to put every ounce of her will into not slicing the kids throat open. Closing her eyes and taking two deep breaths to calm down before opening them again. If she killed this brat right here and now, then she'd only prolong her sentence with the rest of these people. Or maybe she'd get lucky and end up being executed; allowing her to join her brother… if he was actually dead, that was.

Out of the far corner of her eye, Lilly noticed the girl in black staring at her. Her amber eyes were locked on her face, and Lilly took the small instance she had to study the girl in return.  
She was a fair skinned young woman, with amber eyes and long black hair. A ribbon was tied with a large bow on the top of her head, which Lilly noticed twitch just ever so slightly. This made the wastelander smile; looks like she wasn't the only one with something to hide.  
As for her outfit, she wore a black buttoned vest with coattails with a single silver button on the front. Underneath this was a white, sleeveless, high necked, crop undershirt and white shorts with a zipper on the front of each leg, which was curiously emblazoned with the pre-war YKK logo of the Chinese zipper manufacturer.

She also wore black, low-heeled boots and full stockings with a color gradation of black to purple at her ankles. An emblem was visible on the outside of both her thighs, just below her shorts in white. On her left arm was a detached sleeve with a silver cuff around her bicep. Black ribbons were wrapped around both her forearms, and a small, loose scarf was wrapped around her neck, while a gray backpack was strapped to her back and poorly hidden by her hair.

The atmosphere of the group's discussion seemed to fade away entirely into the background as they studied each other. Obviously, the girl in black had seen some action. Violence that caused one to think too long on the things they'd done in the name of one cause or another. That kind of thing left a mark on you, and Lilly knew the look well from her time traveling the wastes, as she and her brothers had seen it plenty of times. Whatever this girl had seen had left the same mark upon her.

"…well, let's go in and see the place." The voice of the blonde drew them back to reality and the two dropped the other's gaze. Opting to follow the rest of the group into the small apartment.

The group of five stepped into a small foyer. To the left of them was a sizeable kitchen with all the amenities: stove, fridge, dishwasher and all. Further in was the living and dining room, which was lit by the light that entered in through the balcony windows, though a chandelier hung over head for when evening rolled around.

The group slowly began to spread out through the apartment, each member wandering off into the various rooms; Weiss staying in the living room, while Yang and Ruby went to check out the bed rooms. Blake on the other hand, secretly kept her gaze locked on the mysterious girl's back. She didn't believe for a _second_ that her real name was Tessa, nor did she trust her in the slightest. The display with Yang from earlier gave the hidden Faunus ample reason enough not to trust this stranger.

"Tessa", instead of following the rest of the team into the other rooms, walked out onto the balcony. Stopping short of the stone railing and staying there. Blake quickly glanced around to see she was alone. The Schnee must've left to make sure the sisters hadn't already caused damage to their new home. Good. That gave Blake a chance to watch and investigate what the late addition to their team would get up to.

Walking towards the balcony door, the hidden Faunus did her best not to make a sound as she tried to sneak up on the silver haired girl. As soon as she cracked open the door just a bit, Blake noticed the girls head twitch slightly. Signifying that she'd already been caught.  
Letting out a quiet sigh, Blake pushed the door open all the way and joined "Tessa" out on the plateau.

Standing side by side, Blake looked out at the scenery, seeing nothing that could be of any major interest to anyone; especially for someone who seemed as disinterested in the group as she did. Sure, there was the view they had of Vale, along with the Forest of Forever Fall, but aside from those, nothing stood out to the hidden Faunus.

The two didn't say anything. Merely continuing to stare out at nothing in silence. Despite her own distrust toward the silver haired girl, Blake knew the look she had about her, just as well as she knew about the people that often wore it: the look of a survivor.

It was something she could respect, to a point. Blake didn't care for those who viewed human life as meaningless, something to be thrown away at a moment's notice; after all, it was one the reasons she left the White Fang.

"Tessa" eventually turned to lean her lower back against the stone railing; looking back at the inside of their new home. The hidden Faunus watched her out of the corner of her eye, taking notice of the expression she wore. It wasn't the face of someone happy to be given a new home. Given her attire, Blake assumed she had been living on the streets for a while. But no. The look she had was of someone… sorrowful. Like she had seen something familiar, and it reminded her of something she'd lost, or forgotten, a long time ago.

In all honesty, the look intrigued the hidden Faunus, though she kept quiet. Whatever, or whoever this girl was, wherever she'd came from, she had clearly had gone through an experience that caused her to have that expression.

"Tessa" than pushed off the railing and stepped towards a door to her left. Leaving Blake to watch her as she knocked on the wooden surface and then pushed it open; entering the small utility building and disappearing from Blake's line of sight.

With her out of gone, the former White Fang member immediately left the balcony to follow. Approaching the stone building and following the grey-haired girl inside. The hidden Faunus stopped short at the door frame, peeking around, and was surprised with the sight that greeted her. It certainly wasn't something she expected to see in such a "small" shed.

Except it was anything _but_ small.

Outside, the shack looked like it could only house some simple things. Washing and drying machines, water tank, those sorts of things were what she'd expected to find inside. Instead, the utility building was home to several work benches, reloading benches, and lockers. Coupled with post-it boards and filing cabinets.

 _Just what is the purpose of all this being in here?_ Blake wondered as she took in more and more of the room. Taking a tentative step inside, the former rebel felt a wave of apprehension wash over her as she pressed on. Being in such a cramped space with a suspicious person, even with little room to maneuver, wouldn't be a difficult fight for someone like her, but she still felt cautious none the less.

The young Faunus rounded the only corner and quickly stepped back. "Tessa" was stood with her back to her, facing what looked like a damaged suit of armor; held up by some chains and a metal frame that kept it in place. The armor itself was badly damaged. Looking as if something akin to a Deathstalker and Nevermore had taken turns ripping it apart. The chest was torn open, the helmet dented in several spots, and the arms and legs were askew. What she found strange were the scorch marks, which appeared to cover the whole outer shell, giving the suit a rusted appearance.

Blake's cat ears twitched under the bow that concealed them. Very faintly, she could hear the faint sound of sniffling, which caused the hidden Faunus to narrow her eyes at the girl's back; only to see Tessa suddenly collapse to her knees, the sounds of crying intensifying.

Lilly couldn't believe just how bad it was. The MKII medic power armor that she had spent many long days and nights developing, was now nothing more than a pile of broken scrap and twisted metal. But it wasn't the state the armor was in that bothered her. It was the scorch marks. With seeing just how _badly_ the armor had been burnt… well… she couldn't help but cry. Not because of the damage done to the suit, but because of Cole. Her brother didn't _have_ any power armor to protect him. If her suit was as badly damaged as it was, then what could have happened to her twin?

At the thought of her brother _actually_ being gone forever, Lilly felt her heart rate accelerate. The synthetic organ beat rapidly in her chest as it pushed blood through her veins, causing a loud _thump_ to be heard in her ears. The young wastelander took large gulps of air in, trying to calm herself. She didn't bother to stop the tears streaming down her face, which fell more and more as she tried her best to regain control over her emotions. She couldn't afford to break down right now. Not with her wardens so close by.

Swallowing the lump in her throat, Lilly picked herself up and wiped the stream of tears with the back of her sleeve. Clenching her jaw, she reached out a hand towards the damaged suit. Placing the small limb on its torn chest as she made a promise to herself: First, she'd fix her suit. And then, if she couldn't find Cole in this new world, she would find a way back to their own world and help New Vegas as its new ruler.

She owed her brother that much.

A slight noise from behind her caused the young wastelander to forget her woes and spin on the spot, taking aim at the disturbance with a laser pistol. The sight she was met with was of the young the girl, dressed in black, staring at her with wide amber eyes; her hands raised in surrender, and a calm expression masking the fear her eyes portrayed.

 _Dammit._ Lilly cursed angrily. She should've expected the curious looking girl to follow her in here. After all, she did follow her out on the balcony.Why _wouldn't_ she follow her into the workshop? The battle hardened girl had surely seen her break down in front of her armor and she cursed herself for showing a semblance of weakness.

 _I won't make that mistake again._ Lilly reprimanded herself.

"I thought I should keep an eye on you." The girl began, her voice monotone, yet it still held an edge that Lilly didn't miss. "At least until the others are done checking out the new place." She finished. Lowering her hands to her sides, near her weapon.

Lilly's eyes narrowed at that, but she didn't do anything. Her silver-grey eyes ran over the strange girl's figure one last time, looking for any inclination that she planned to attack. Seeing the girl not making any effort to harm her, Lilly sighed heavily and lowered the pistol and stood to fully face her.

Taking a careful step forward, the girl spoke again: "My name is Blake." The hidden Faunus introduced. Inclining her head to the armor: "I take it that belongs to you?" "Blake" added. Her voice still monotone as to not give anything away.

Lilly closed her eyes for a second. Thinking over all of the possible things that could go wrong if Lilly gave away too much about herself.  
 _Still, this one doesn't seem in on whatever the dear professor has planned for me._ Against her better judgment, Lilly nodded. Taking a leap of faith with the curious girl before her.

Blake stepped past her. The scent of trees assailed the wastelander's senses, along with the faint smell of fish, of all things.  
 _Strange._ Lilly thought absently. Wondering why a girl like her would smell like she had worked in a fishery. _We'll see where this goes._ The wastelander reminded herself that she was in the presence of an unknown. She couldn't afford to focus on meaningless things such as this girl's previous profession.

"It looks pretty beat up." Blake commented on the damaged armor. Taking in the scorched appearance and chest piece that had been ripped apart and poorly put back together. The hidden Faunus couldn't help but reach out a hand in an attempt to stroke the damaged breastplate. The armor, even in this state, reminded her of the armor she had read in her books. Brave warriors charging forward to fight the Grimm. Each one protected by a near unbreakable suit of steel.

Instinctively, Lilly reacted by lashing out with her own hand and catching the girl's wrist before her fingertips could touch the suit. Holding her wrist tightly in a grip that would have crushed a lesser person's bones.

 _Shit._ Lilly cursed again. She had just said she shouldn't give more about herself away.  
Looking up, she saw Blake staring at her with somewhat shocked expression, though that was replaced by her regular stoicism as soon as Tessa released her hand.

Pulling out a card, Lilly scribbled the word "sorry" and handed it to Blake. Turing to stare at her broken armor while she let the girl take in the silent apology.

"It… isn't a problem." Blake said beside her. Idly rubbing her wrist as they both went back to staring at the armor.

"Blllllllll _aaaaaaaaaaakkkkkkkkk_ eeeee! Teeeeeeees _sssssssss_ aaaaaaaa!" They suddenly heard a high-pitched voice call out. The two girls turned to face the way they'd entered. One sighing with annoyance while the other with resignation. Together, they exited the workshop and re-entered their new home.

There, they found the rest of the group stood in the center of the living room. Each one wearing a different expression then the last. One with a look of distaste, another with a look of poorly concealed excitement, while the last had a downcast expression drawn upon her face.

Prissy Bitch marched right up and spoke to them in a condescending tone: "And where did you two go, hmm?" Weiss asked, crossing her arms in the process. Her tone gave Lilly the same amount of irritation as before. And from what she could see out of her peripheral, Blake thought the same thing; a flicker of annoyance in an amber eye being the only indication.

Blake answered for them: "We were checking out the utility shed." she gestured back to the balcony while continuing: "Our lockers are in there, along with spare parts for whatever maintenance our gear might require." She added.

Ruby's eyes slightly bulged at that last bit. "Anything new?" She asked excitedly. Her body beginning to shake at the thought of seeing a new weapon.

Blake merely shook her head as a response; which immediately calmed the tiny reaper down.

"Oh." She replied, crestfallen at the news.

Yang noticed the shift in her sister's demeanor and threw on a joyful façade. "Come on sis! It isn't all _that_ bad!" the blonde assured the tiny reaper. Throwing an arm around the younger girl's neck and bringing her close to a breast.

"Y _a_ n _g s_ t _o_ p." Ruby's muffled protests could be heard by everyone around them. The girl in white gave a distasteful look at the display and returned her attention to the two onlookers.

"The sisters and I have decided where the main team members will be staying." Weiss began, voice prim and proper. As if she couldn't stomach the thought of speaking to them like they were normal people.  
"Ruby and I will take the room on the left. Blake and Yang will take the room on the right." She then narrowed her eyes upon Lilly prior to finishing: "That just leaves you."

Lilly returned the heiress' look with one of her own. The disdain the two felt for each other was plain for everyone to see. Clearly, whoever this girl was, she did not approve of Lilly's 'last minute addition'.  
 _It isn't my problem she can't adapt._ Lilly thought tiredly. Having become fed up with dealing with the snobbish girl and her attitude.

Pulling out another card, the wastelander scribbled what she had to say on the slip of paper and handed it to the young prude before spinning on the heel of her boot and leaving the group with the new information.

""I'll sleep in the utility building."" Yang read aloud from over Weiss' shoulder.

The heiress immediately crushed the note in her hand and let out an audible growl. "I don't know _who_ she thinks she is, but she _cannot_ just make decisions by herself without consulting us first." The white haired girl stated, crushing the paper even more as she balled her hands into fists. "That's what teams _do._ " Before she said anymore, the heiress turned to Ruby, looking at her with a vicious glare before speaking: " _You're_ the team leader. Go deal with this." she hissed out.

Ruby shrunk away from the heiress' hard stare and quietly made her way out onto the balcony to search for Tessa. Pressing forward even as she heard her sister and Weiss begin to bicker between themselves. The young girl turned to find the door to the utility building left ajar. Pushing her way in, Ruby was met with the same sight Blake had seen earlier. With one noticeable item standing out to the tiny reaper.

Stepping forward, Ruby ran a hand over the remains of _Crescent Rose._ The hilt and scythe head, what remained of it any way, were placed on one of the work benches just before the corner. The familiar feelings of grief she'd experienced when first seeing her beloved weapon destroyed slowly crept back into her mind and heart; causing Ruby to question why she should even bother coming to talk to their late addition when she knew the older girl would brush her off anyway.

 _Even so, I still have to._ Ruby relented. As team leader, she couldn't let a rift between her and any of her team mates form; no matter her opinions of them.

 _Let's just… get this over with._ Ruby thought solemnly. Walking around the bend, the tiny reaper found her silver haired team mate crouched behind a very familiar suit of armor. From what she could see, Tessa had attached some kind of cord from the thing on her arm to one of the legs of the armor. She stared intently at her wrist device and hadn't seemed to notice her presence.

Upon seeing her, Ruby was reminded of just how intimidating the girl really was. Swallowing the lump in her throat, the tiny stepped forward and awkwardly began to speak: "Um, Tessa? Weiss wanted me to come in here and talk to you." she began, awkwardly as usual. Ruby inwardly cringed at how her own voice sounded and how poor she was at starting a conversation with the stranger.

"I just wanted to ask, I mean, as team leader… do you, umm, really _want_ to sleep in here? I mean, we could find you someplace else-." Ruby instantly stopped talking as Tessa let out a hiss and detached the cord from the armor. Standing, the older girl walked over to her in a quick stride, scribbling something on another slip of paper as she went, and handing it to her; as soon as the tiny reaper took it, Tessa immediately turned away from her went back to the armor, picking up an old-fashioned tool box as she went.

"I'm not interested in making friends." Was all the note said.

Ruby lowered the card and stared at Tessa with a sad expression as the older girl began to root around in the tool box before retrieving a saw and materializing a wielding mask.

As she began to work without paying her any more heed, Ruby silently exited the utility building. A heavy weight settling inside her gut as she came back to see Weiss and Yang still bickering in the living room, with Blake nowhere to be seen.

"Guess I was right about one thing." Ruby muttered to herself. Turing to face the view she and the others all had of the city of Vale. If she was unable to talk to any of her team mates, let alone get everyone she was supposed to be a team with to work together without ending up in a fight… well…

… Then she really _wasn't_ cut out to be a leader after all.

 **A.N: So, that's the end of part one. I already have part two written out, as it was originally supposed to be part of this chapter as one whole goodie, but I decided to split the difference and make it a two-part chapter as that lightens the shotty editing work I have to, and gives everyone something to look forward to.**

 **Hope ya'll are excited and I'll see everyone in the next part.**

 **Ciao!**


	8. Unexpected Meetings:CNT

_Somewhere in the city of Vale. Current time: Evening…_

"Are you _sure_ taking these routs is safe?"

Igren didn't answer as she peaked around yet another corner. Her Faunus ears twitched and her tail swished as she listened for any sign of danger. The Dust manipulator then gestured for him to follow and the two darted forward; running as silently as possible and making a sharp turn into an adjacent alleyway; stopping once again.

"I used to take these back streets to lose the local authorities when I was young." She explained. "While the people here, at least at the time I was around, were friendly to anyone down on their luck. Now though…" she trailed off as her ears twitched again. "Someone's coming. Get behind the trashcans." She whispered with a hiss. The two ducked behind the unusually large trash containers waited.

Cole adjusted the unconscious woman on his shoulder as best he could and listened to the sound of boots on stone with the help of his helmets audio-receptors. The sound grew louder and then began to die away as whoever passed by left the alleyway uninvestigated.

"I think we're good." Igren informed him. The two stood back up and continued on their way. The wastelander following behind the Faunus while both listened for any possible threats that could appear.

"I don't suppose you would care to tell me a bit about this place?" Cole asked randomly. His synthetic voice masking any sign of emotion he may have expressed, aside from curiosity.  
When the two had first seen the city over the hill they'd finished climbing, the wastelander's breath had been taken away by the sight of a city not crumbling to ruins. He had expected them to enter said city through the front gates, but instead, they'd gone through an old sewer grate; in which Cole had expected to find themselves winding up in a large factory. Fortunately, his companion had stopped half-way and together, the two climbed out of a manhole and out into an older looking section of the city.

"At the time, t'was the area where most of my people lived." Igren began, slowing her pace so she could speak clearly: "Back then, things were relatively simple. We lived as the humans did, although with much… heavier… restrictions."

"And what do you mean by that?"

The Faunus glanced back at him prior to continuing: "We had limited rights for a long time. In our early history, we we're treated with mistrust, suspicion, and discrimination." She began, her tone mournful as she recalled what she had been taught in school.  
"Eventually, a war between the two races began. The "Great War", as they called it, was between all the kingdoms, and ended an eighty odd years ago. We were given the island of Menagerie as a sort of token, along with all the rights the humans had. Some saw the island as a gift, while others saw it as a kind of slap to the face. An insult."

She stopped just before another corner and checked around. Once she found the coast to be clear, Igren gestured for him to follow; continuing her explanation as they went: "The war was followed up with the Faunus Rights Revolution. Humans had begun to countermand the rights we beast folk were given, and tried to confine us to the island they'd given us." She turned to smile at him: "Fortunately, we were mostly successful in countering their efforts."

"Sounds like a rough deal." Cole offered his sympathy. "I knew quite a number of people from where I'm from who were prosecuted because they were considered "different" by us humans."

Igren gave a low chuckle: "Seems like wherever you go, there will always be people who have a problem with how you were born." The Faunus suddenly stopped, reaching out an arm to halt his progress.

"Wait." She sniffed at air while her ears twitched. "We're not alone." She informed him while she unsheathed her staff from her back. Giving it a swing to extend it.

In Cole's green tinted view, he saw two men in uniform step out from their hiding places. The wastelander turned his head to look back and see two more thugs standing behind them. One of the four stepped forward and spoke: "Well, what have we here? A Faunus, a robot, and an unconscious woman." He made _tsk_ sound before continuing: "Not a pretty sight."

"And you are?" Cole asked, slightly annoyed at being called a machine.

"VPD. My squad and I are tasked with patrolling this area for anything suspicious, and apprehend possible threats should we deem them dangerous to the city." He paused to look between himself, Igren, and finally the woman hoisted over his shoulder. "And I'd say you two look _very_ dangerous, not to mention suspicious." The man un-holstered a piece from his hip and took aim. The rest of the men following his example.

"Drop the woman and the staff and place your hands over your heads. You're both under arrest."

"I don't suppose I could talk you out this?" Cole asked curiously. Hoping to resolve this peacefully and without bloodshed.

The question didn't have any effect on the cop who straightened his aim. "No." he said simply.

The wastelander let out a slow, metallic sigh and shook his head: "It was worth a shot." Was all Cole said before he dropped the woman on his shoulder and materialized two pistols; the ranger sequoia in his right hand, while a twelve-point seven-millimeter pistol occupied his left. He trained both guns on the two groups on opposite sides and, with them being blinded by the sudden flash of light from his Pip-Boy, fired both with precision with the help of his suits VATS system.  
The bullets ripped through the air and impacted with each officers' weapon. The armor piercing rounds destroying the pistols as soon they landed.

"Son of a bitch!" one of the subordinates cursed loudly, holding his hand as he messaged the muscles.

Cole holstered the guns in his coat and retrieved the woman from the ground. "Now, if you'll excuse us, we have places to be."

The wastelander had taken a step before the man suddenly charged him. Sighing again, Cole tossed the woman to Igren, who fumbled to catch her as she'd still held her staff.

Cole ducked under the punch meant for his head and delivered one of his own to the cop's midsection.  
The older man wheezed and tried to throw right hook, which Cole merely leaned back to avoid before sweeping his opponents feet out from under him.

"The rest are coming." Samantha informed him. Thinking quickly, Cole pulled one his pistols out and aimed it right at their leader's head.

"Take another step and I smear the ground with his brains." The waster threatened. The men halted their approach and stared, conflicted between doing their duty and preserving the wellbeing of their leader. One of the men from behind took a step forward, causing Cole to breathe a small breath. Knowing what was about to come. The ones before him seemed to nod in agreement with the two from behind and they resumed their charge. The wastelander closed his eyes and pulled the trigger. The sound of the bullet impacting with bone sent a small shiver through Cole as the familiar sound of a skull shattering resonated throughout his body.

He opened his eyes to see the top of the leader's head blown off. The gory sight caused the three remaining men around them to stop their charge and gag at the sight. One of them straight up vomiting from the gruesome sight.  
Before they could recover, Cole aimed with VATS and fired one shot into the leg of the man in front of him and two more into the legs behind him. Incapacitating them, but keeping them alive.

"Let's go." Cole said coldly. Stepping over the corpse and around the wounded cop.

He stopped just before the next corner and spoke: "For what it's worth," he said over his shoulder, voice cold and metallic: "I'm sorry."

The two left the gory scene and continued on their way in silence. Neither knowing what to say after what they'd just witnessed.

Once they were well enough away from the wounded cops, Igren spoke: "You did the right thing." She said beside him, nodding as she adjusted the woman on her shoulder.

Cole didn't say anything and focused on the path before them.

"Had we left the one alive, he would've hounded us for the rest of our journey. You did the right thing in getting rid of-."

"Will you please just stop!?" Cole snapped at the young Faunus. "I don't want to talk about it."

"We'll I certainly do." Another voice chimed in from the shadows, causing the two to go on their guard once more.

"That was an impressive display, if I might say. It's not very often I see someone other than Faunus killing Vale police officers." The voice continued.

Both Igren and Cole stood back-to-back as they circled around, searching for any sign of where the voice could be.

"Over here." The voice called out.

The two turned to see a woman standing in a lit-up part of the alley. Her figure illuminated by the moonlight. Arms crossed over her chest and a tail wrapped around her heels as she waited for them to notice her. From what he could see, a sly smirk covered her lips as she gave them a little wave once both fully faced her.

"Very impressive." She complimented.

"Who are you?" Cole's synthetic voice demanded. Tucking Igren, who was carrying their unconscious companion, behind him as he glared at the stranger through his visor.

"Just a spectator is all." The woman dismissed his question casually. "I found the show you put on to be quite interesting." She added, taking a step closer to them.

Cole pulled out his sequoia and took aim at the approaching woman. "I'm warning you, my patience tonight is wearing thin." He threatened. Lining the sights up with her head.

The woman was unintimidated and continued to step closer. Reaching him with a small number of steps. Once she was near, the woman ran a clawed hand over the embroidery that decorated the gun. Tracing one of her short talons along the design as she retracted the limb.

"How beautiful." She gave yet another compliment.

Now that he had a closer view of her, Cole was greeted with the sight of something he hadn't expected to see. The stranger wore an outfit that consisted of a sleeveless jacket, long gloves, and curved stiletto heel boots that accommodated her curved legs. Several straps with containers of what Cole assumed were powdered Dust, were also lined across her pants. Her skin was a red leathery surface, with the occasional black spot here and there on her neck and arms. The scales stopped just below her jawline and forehead, framing her face. Two large, glowing yellow irises stared at him through slanted lids; making her appear to be of Asian descent.

"I'm here to make you an offer." She said suddenly. The playful attitude she'd had before instantly being replaced with one of a more serious business woman.

And controlling one, given her tone.

"I can help you two… dispose, of whoever it is you're carrying there." she inclined her head to their unconscious companion. "And in return, you will help me, and a little group that I am a part of."

Cole hesitated. The wastelander mulled over the deal in his mind while he stared into her glowing irises. _What does she want, really?_ The waster asked himself. Wondering just what this woman would make him do if he agreed.  
 _It sounds shady, but the more help we have with getting the Liberian to a doctor, the easier things will be in terms of maneuverability._ Cole conceded. And he's have more man power to search for Lilly. 

"Is that it?" he questioned. Still wondering if this was a good idea.

The Faunus smiled at him again: "That's it. What do you say?"

Cole turned to Igren and spoke to the young girl: "Your thoughts on this?" he asked her for her opinion. Silently, he hopped that his companion would give him a good reason not to take the deal.

"I think it sounds fair." The Faunus said with a nod. Adjusting the unconscious woman on her shoulder. "She helps us, we help her. And at least we would be able to get around without being stopped by the authorities." Igren voiced his thoughts. Supporting the deal.

 _Great._ Cole thought with resignation.

Turning to the lizard Faunus, Cole spoke again: "Alright. We could use the help." He paused and stepped closer to the woman. "Just make sure she gets to a doctor. Or the deals off."

Cole's threat sent a shiver down Igren's spine. The alteration to the man's voice added to the intimidation factor when it was coupled with his strange suit.

"You have my word." The woman agreed. Stretching out a hand, she asked another question: "Might I know your name?"

The waster narrowed his eyes again before answering: "Cole." He said simply. Taking her hand with a firm grip. "And yours?"

The woman smiled at him again. An eerie smile that had him thinking twice about the deal.

"Cinder Fall."

 **A.N: And that sums up Act I for this story! Kinda a cliff hanger, but hey, who doesn't love those?**

 **Anywho, I don't really have much to say about this chapter, other than that it was originally supposed to be part of yesterday's chapter. But considering it would have added a few more hours of editing, something I didn't have at the time, I decided that it would be easier to cut it in half. I know this chapter's probably pretty dull, in fact I doubt you could even call it a chapter, but still: I hope everyone enjoyed the lack luster introduction of Faunus Cinder!**

 **As an additional note, the reason I made Cinder a Faunus was something I'd been playing with for a while. And Like I said,** _ **I will be changing somethings**_ **. I have plans for this story and that's all I'm gonna give away.**

 **Ciao everybody!**


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